Yes, They're Seriously Back!
by marauderette-47
Summary: Everyone saw Sirius Black go through the Veil. But several hours later, he came back out. Everyone knew about the Potters. What no one expected was for them to come back to life. Harry finally gets the family he deserves - ON TEMPORARY HIATUS.
1. The Flaw in the Veil

**Yes, They're Seriously Back!**

**By: marauderette-47**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters. Am I JK Rowling? No? Then I don't own it:)**

**A/N: I just re-read Order of the Phoenix the other day, and bawled my eyes out :(( I miss Sirius! So I'm writing this fic to bring him back! And I figured that as long as **_**he **_**was coming back, Lily and James should have a shot at parenthood! This is hopefully a good twist on a way over-used plot:) Please enjoy! And reviews are appreciated :)**

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><p><strong>Chapter One: The Flaw In The Veil<strong>

In the Death Chamber in the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic, there lies a secret. Most people do not know this secret, as no one is brave enough to go near the Death Chamber. In the Death Chamber in the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic, there lies a Veil. This Veil is the doorway between the land of the living and the land of the dead. Very few people have gone through this Veil. Everyone who ever tried was never seen again.

Until now, that is.

Because on the night that our story begins, someone _did _come out the other side of the Veil. The man had stumbled backwards through the curtained archway hours before, because he had been thrown off balance by a curse that was thrown at him by his cousin, Bellatrix LeStrange. The man probably would have walked out of the Veil sooner, had the curse that had been flung at him not a _Stunning _curse. But yes, this man had been stunned, and so, he had not been able to come out of the archway for quite some time.

When he _did _walk out the other side of the Veil, he was quite confused. At first he couldn't remember anything that had happened .But slowly, the memories flowed back into his head. There had been a battle, he remembered, in the very room he was standing in. A battle between Death Eaters and members of the Order of the Phoenix. The battle had happened all because of a Dark Wizard, by the name of Lord Voldemort. Lord Voldemort had entered Harry Potter's mind. And everything had spiraled out of control from there. How did this affect the man who had stumbled backwards out of the archway of death?

Well, it affected him because Harry Potter just so happened to be this man's godson.

Thoughts of Harry Potter jumped into the forefront of the man's mind, and the man wanted to kick himself. Harry! He had to get to his godson, immediately! He knew exactly what had happened – Harry had seen him go through the Veil! Harry believed him dead!

"Harry," the man murmured painfully, clutching his heart. He felt _so _awful – Harry had already lost so much. How could this man have been stupid enough to allow himself to leave his godson?

Yes, Harry Potter had lost many things, his parents included. Harry's father – James – had been the man's best friend growing up. Naturally, the man was made godfather when Harry was born, and after Harry's parents were tragically killed by Voldemort fourteen years earlier, he was Harry's rightful guardian. He was the only parent Harry had ever known.

And he'd let his godson down.

This man's name was Sirius Black.

And he had to find Harry Potter before the night was through.

Using the last reserves of his strength, Sirius Apparated from the Death Chamber at the Department of Mysteries. He didn't know where Harry would be, so he settled for going home and finding out from there. _Ugh. _Home. The place Sirius was going to hadn't been _home _for a long time. But going there first was the only plan Sirius had, and so, he once again found himself on the street outside of Number 12, Grimmauld Place.

Sirius panted, and clutched his chest as he sat himself on the sidewalk in front of the dark and gloomy house settled in between 11 and 13. Apparating took a lot out of a person, and Sirius had already been weakened from being stunned and flung into the very essence of death. He wasn't exactly having the best day.

When he was able to breathe normally again, Sirius stood up on shaky legs. He approached his old home cautiously, unsure if he would set off the security measures that had been placed there by Albus Dumbledore. When no alarms went off as Sirius grabbed the doorknob, he relaxed. Feeling safe and confident, Sirius opened the creaky old door and entered the hallway.

Where he was greeted by the cheerful sounds of his mother's ancient portrait screeching at him. Ah, home sweet home.

_"Yoooou! Blood traitor, abomination, shame of my flesh!"_

"Who on _earth _forgot to close this wretched curtain?" Sirius grumbled to himself. With tremendous effort, the last Black alive managed to shut the thick curtains that surrounded his mother's portrait. When they were closed, the old woman's screeches and insults died down, and the hallway was left in an eerie, echo-y silence.

"Hello?" shouted Sirius hesitantly, as he made his way through his old house. "Anyone home?"

It was stupid to expect an answer, and Sirius didn't feel too disappointed when none came. Why did he expect anyone to be home? The only one who was always there was the Black Family House Elf, Kreacher, and it wasn't like he would have responded to Sirius's call _anyway. _Sirius didn't shout for anyone anymore, and explored the remainer of Number 12, Grimmauld Place in silence. The only place left for him to look was the kitchen. So silently, Sirius opened the old white door, and poked his head in. But he wasn't greeted by a crushing darkness as he had been when he'd looked in the other rooms. No, there was a single light turned on in the ancient kitchen. It was a small lamp, that was on a small table in a small corner of the room. At this table, there were two chairs. And seated on one chair, there was one man.

He quite obviously had neither seen nor heard Sirius enter the room. He had his head bowed, and Sirius wondered if he was dead. But no, Sirius saw the rise and fall of this man's chest. Upon noticing this fact, Sirius also noticed that the patterns of the man's breathing were very irregular. It was when he heard the silent sobs that Sirius realized who the man seated at the table was.

It was his best friend, Remus Lupin.

Sirius instantly felt _awful. _He didn't realize how much his death would affect everyone…and if Remus was _this _bad, then Harry was probably fifty times worse.

"…can't believe…"

Sirius's head instantly snapped up and he looked at Remus expectantly. It wasn't unusual that his old friend spoke to himself; he used to do it all the time. Except back in those days, Sirius never paid attention to what Remus said to himself. Now, however, Sirius was listening with keen interest.

"…after everything he's _gone _through…killed by a bloody _curtain…_"

"Hey!" Sirius defended suddenly. "I resent that! I was _not _killed by the bloody _curtain; _I was _killed _by my bloody _cousin! _If you're going to grumble about my death, at _least _get your facts right, Remus!"

Remus's head snapped up immediately, and he looked madly about the room for the source of the familiar voice who had addressed him. When his tired eyes fell on Sirius, Remus's red-rimmed eyes widened considerably, and he found himself at a loss for words.

"What?" Sirius smirked. "Not even going to say 'hello'?"

Sirius suddenly realized that he was being quite uncaring. But he'd never been good at displaying his emotions and feelings. For example, when the Ministry hauled him off to Azkaban Prison, Sirius had done nothing but laugh. What else _could _he have done? There was no emotion or action that could have properly displayed his wild grief. And so he had laughed.

"I'm sorry," Sirius apologized immediately, taking a seat at the other chair at the small kitchen table. "That was…mean. I just didn't know what else to say."

When Remus finally seemed to find words, they came out of his dry mouth slow and hesitant. He shook his head several times, and tried to steady his breathing. After all, he'd been crying. When he was sure his voice was rather steady, Remus whispered, "This is mad. _I'm _mad…Sirius, you're _dead._ This isn't real, this _can't _be possible…"

"It's possible," Sirius muttered. "And real, I assure you. If I _wasn't _alive, I wouldn't be this bloody _sore. _And I wouldn't want Firewhiskey so much."

"If you _are _a person," Remus stated matter-of-factly. "And you're _not _dead…then you're _not _Sirius…Death Eater!" Remus suddenly growled, and stood up. The lycanthrope within him suddenly seemed to take over, and Remus looked at Sirius madly. "Get out! _OUT! _How did you get here, hm? Kreatcher tell you where Headquarters is _too? _I DON'T CARE! STOP IMPERSINATING SIRIUS! HE'S DEAD, I KNOW HE'S DEAD SO JUST _GET OUT!_"

"Remus, Remus!" Sirius said frantically, standing up as well. "Re_lax! _I'm not a Death Eater, look!"

Sirius pulled up the sleeves on his shirt, and showed his arms to Remus. If Sirius truly _was _a Death Eater, then an imprint of the Dark Mark would be visible on this area.

"Pollyjuice!" Remus growled. "Any _number _of things could hide that wretched mark! I _saw _Sirius die! You won't convince me otherwise! So get _out_, or I'll kill you!"

"You don't have a wand," Sirius pointed out slyly, trying to make Remus see reason. Since reason itself seemed not to be working, the only other thing that Sirius seemed to be able to do was to act as much like himself as possible. Maybe then, Remus would see the truth.

"Neither do you!" Remus shot back. Then, the realization of the truth of the words he just screeched seemed to dawn on Remus, and he sat back down almost automatically. His eyebrows knitted together in confusion, and Remus muttered, "Neither…do…you?"

"Exactly!" Sirius yelled victoriously, sitting back down as well. "If I _was _a Death Eater, then why would I come here unarmed?"

"You planned it!" Remus said quickly.

"Not that smart, mate."

"Sirius…is…dead…" Remus said, as though he was trying to convince himself and not the man sitting opposite him at the table.

"I'm not." Sirius assured his old friend. He held his right hand in the air, and swore, "Marauder's Honor, Moony."

That did it. The dam inside of Remus broke, and he stared longingly at his friend. Sirius seemed to realize when Remus believed it was truly him, for he smiled widely.

Remus stared unbelieving at Sirius and asked the question that was on everyone's mind. "How?"

"Dunno," Sirius shrugged. "I'd tell you if I knew, honest."

"You'll have to do better than that," Remus said, trying to remain calm and collected. "If it really _is _you, Sirius, I'll need to know _how, _exactly, you _came back from the dead."_

"Are you sure I really _died_?" Sirius questioned, raising an eyebrow. Remus seemed slightly taken aback; of all the things he expected Sirius to ask, that one _definitely _wasn't on the list.

"Yes, I'm _sure!_" Remus yelled, his red eyes and pale face making him look terrifying. "I _saw _you, Sirius! You _fell through the Veil _in the Death Chamber! I _held Harry back when he tried to go after you!_"

The mention of Harry shut Sirius up quickly, and he felt incredibly guilty. His stupid and rash thinking almost cost his godson of the only family he'd ever known.

"Is Harry…okay?" Sirius asked carefully, knowing the answer before Remus even opened his mouth.

"Okay?" Remus asked incredulously. "_Okay? _Well, I suppose he was 'okay' if you'd call allowing a fifteen year old boy to use a Cruciartus Curse _okay!_"

"He used Crucio?" Sirius asked, disbelieving. He'd never known Harry to be so cruel to _anything, _not even to the most evil beings he'd ever faced. He didn't bat an eye when he'd allowed Pettigrew to live. He didn't even use an Unforgivable when he'd faced down _Voldemort. _Who was awful enough that Harry would use the Torture Curse on them? And then it dawned on Sirius, and he murmured, "Bellatrix…"

"Exactly." Remus said, shaking his head sadly. It was then that Sirius noticed the half-empty bottle of Firewhiskey in front of his friend, and he felt even worse. Remus, however, continued. "When y-you went through the Veil," he began shakily. "Harry tried to go after you."

"No!"

"Yes." Remus said, nodding sadly. "I stopped him, but he was…difficult. He refused to believe that you were dead. And then Bellatrix began to…taunt him. And Harry was so maddened with grief he just sort of…lost it. There's too much detail to go into at the moment, however. I think you should speak to Harry yourself."

"And you think he'll react any better than _you _did?" Sirius asked in disbelief. "Harry has _Lily's _temper, Remus. And I think we _both _remember how _that _can be. I don't exactly want to be on the receiving end of _that _particular green-eyed glare again."

"Don't be so selfish." Remus snapped. "Harry _misses _you, Padfoot. He feels like you're the only family he's ever really had that he can depend on. And then you just…_died. _He needs you."

"Don't you think I know that?" Sirius asked. "I need him too, Remus! He's my _godson! _I just don't know how I'm going to go about making him believe it's me."

"You'll find a way, Sirius." Remus said conversationally, taking a long sip of Firewhiskey. "You always _were _the creative one."

* * *

><p>Many miles away, more extraordinary events were taking place. The location: Godric's Hollow.<p>

In Godric's Hollow, there is a house. This house once belonged to a family of three. Never before had a family consisted of such loyalty, love, and devotion. Oh, but the three people whom had once occupied this home had loved each other more than anything else in the world.

The three people who used to live in this house were Lily Potter, James Potter, and their one year old son, Harry Potter. Lily and James had been so in love that it was unfair that it ever had to end. And they loved their small son even more then they loved each other. They would have _died _to protect their baby boy…

In fact, that's exactly what they had done fourteen years previous.

But if you had been looking in the ruins of the old Potter House that evening, you would have seen a remarkable sight. Lying in the front hallway of the crumbled home, you would see James Potter, glasses broken and robes torn, blinking his eyes furiously. In the nursery, you would see Lily Potter, clutching her side as she struggled to stand up. This should have been impossible. But nothing was _ever _impossible, you see, because Lily and James – who had been dead – were now not.

James ached all over, but he was breathing. And as he stood up, he remembered the events that had caused him to be on the ground in the first place. Believing immediately that there was no hope, and that his wife and son were dead, James fell back to the floor, and clutched his chest as he sobbed. Unknown to James, however, was that upstairs his wife was doing the exact same thing.

Lily Potter could hardly breathe in between her manic sobbing. She had failed both her husband and her son. She lied on the floor, holding her son's scorched and musty stuffed stag close to her heart. She could not think. All she knew was pain as she cried and cried and cried.

The only thing that pierced the young woman's grief was the anguished cry that she suddenly heard from below her.

Utterly heartbreaking and undeniably James, Lily sprang to her feet more quickly than anyone in the world could have imagined possible. She dropped the stag on the floor, and tore down the steps as quickly as her weakened and petite legs could carry her. She almost passed out in relief when she saw James on the floor. Granted, he was crying like a madman, but he was _breathing._

"JAMES!" Lily croaked. Slowly, James Potter lifted his head from the ground, and stared up at Lily in shock and disbelief. Eventually, his wife's terrible state broke through his stupor, and he pulled her down to his level by her hand.

"Lily…" he whispered, staring at his wife for all that she was worth. He pulled her close to him, and gently stroked her hair. Both knew what the other was thinking without having to say anything out loud, and they held each other and sobbed and grieved for the lost life of their little baby.

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><p>Unbeknownst to them, however, Harry Potter was very much alive. In fact, he was grieving himself. The events of the day ran through his mind over and over again, in a constant loop. The vision of Sirius being tormented by Voldemort…the Prophecy…Bellatrix's laugh as she killed Sirius…<p>

Sirius. The only adult Harry had ever come to think of as a parent…the only parent he ever had…that he could remember, anyway. And he was gone, gone because of a stupid mistake…

"Gone because of me," Harry muttered to himself.

It was true, Sirius was dead because of Harry. If Harry hadn't been so _stupid, _and allowed himself to believe that Voldemort had truly captured Sirius, then his godfather would still be alive.

Harry wondered briefly what Sirius would have said to comfort Harry, if he wasn't dead. Harry wondered…would Sirius forgive him? Would Sirius not even _blame _him? Or would Sirius feel the unimaginable…would Sirius _hate _him? Blame him entirely? Wish once and for all that Harry was _James _and not Harry?

_But I'll never know, _Harry thought to himself miserably. _Because he's dead. And it really _is _my entire fault._

A knock at the door knocked Harry out of his stupor. He wondered why any of the other boys would have bothered knocking at all – it was the boys' dormitory, they had every right to enter. And then he realized that everyone would know about his…er…_state _at the moment, and they would want to make sure he was okay before they just barged in.

"Come in," Harry muttered deadly, pulling his arms around his knees. He was seated on his bed, so he had a good view when his best friend – Ronald Weasley – entered the room.

"Hey mate," Ron said quietly, coming to sit next to Harry on his bed. "How ya holding up?"

"I'm fine, Ron." Harry assured his friend, not wanting anyone's pity.

"Are you sure?" Ron asked doubtfully. "It's okay to be upset, you know. We know how much Sirius meant to you."

"Do you?" asked Harry, raising an eyebrow. He wasn't meaning to be so angry with Ron, but he was angry and hurt and had no other way to release his feelings. "You've had your parents your whole life, Ron. I never had parents. Sirius was the closest thing to one I ever had, and now he's gone. You _don't _know how this feels."

"I'm sorry, mate." Ron muttered uncomfortably, unsure of how to console his friend. For Harry was right; Ron _didn't _know how Harry felt. "I'll just…leave you to your thoughts then." And without another word, the youngest Weasley boy left the dorm.

Harry felt just awful, and fell back onto his pillows. Even though it was only six in the evening, the Boy Who Lived fell fast asleep…

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><p><strong>Wow. Quite a lot happened there. So…yes! Please review! Basically, Sirius, James, and Lily are coming back to life and are going to help Harry a lot! AU after the Department of Mysteries, pretty much…parts of HBP will occur, but things are BOUND to be different with these three in the picture, ESPECIALLY over Summer! So…please tell me your thoughts!<strong>

**~marauderette-47**


	2. Trapped

**Yes, They're Seriously Back!**

**By: marauderette-47**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters. Am I JK Rowling? No? Then I don't own it:)**

**A/N: Thanks so much for the support, everyone! And if you like this story, check out the other ones I just posted! And if you're reading, pretty please review? I just wanna know how I'm doing:) Okay, enjoy the chappy!**

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><p><strong>Chapter Two: Trapped <strong>

Lily and James sat quietly in the front hallway in the ruins of their home. They held onto each other tightly as their thoughts trailed off to the night not so long ago (at least to them) when everything in their world suddenly shifted, and went dark…

_*Flashback*_

_"And that, Harry, is called the Patronus Charm." James Potter told his one year old son, smiling proudly. Harry reached his little arms out in an attempt to pet his father's stag Patronus, but his tiny hands went right through the spectrum of blue light. James laughed at his son's antics._

_"You can't touch it, son." James said. "Sorry to disappoint." _

_"Corrupting our son, are you James?" James's wife – Lily – asked as she entered the living room with a mug of tea._

_"Not at all, love." James grinned, picking his son up off the floor and holding him in his arms. "If I was corrupting him, I would be telling him how to set off dungbombs or something." _

_"He's only one!" Lily said, her eyes widening. "You _wouldn't_!"_

_"Do you not know me at all?" James laughed. "I could find a way to teach him so that he'd understand. I know! We could write a book about it, Lils! I could write and you could illustrate – and it would be all about the wonders of pranking as a child! Oh, come on, we could _do _it!" _

_"Can you even _write_?" Lily asked skeptically, raising a perfect red eyebrow as she sipped her tea._

_"Of course. Don't have so little faith in me, wifey." James pouted, pretending to look hurt._

_"_Don't _call me that." Lily hissed. "You _know _I hate it when you call me that."_

_"I know." James shrugged. "I know a lot about you, love. I know that when you're angry, your left eye twitches a bit. And when you smile, you've got a dimple right on your right cheek. And when you cry, you tap your foot a lot, like you're trying to distract yourself. And when you're trying to be funny-"_

_"Do you stalk me or something?" Lily asked. "How do you know so much about me?" _

_"I've loved you for almost half my life, Lils, I _think _I know _some _things about you." James said, rolling his eyes. "Merlin, _again _with the little faith!"_

_"Sorry to have ever doubted you, oh wise and noble Prongs!" Lily shouted jubilantly, pretending to bow to her husband like his goofy friends would have._

_"And _that's _why I love you!" James said happily. Harry – the whole time – had been looking between his parents and smiling during the entirety of their little playful argument. At the end, he clapped his little hands together, earning him grins from the two people in the world who loved him most._

_Suddenly, there was a knock at the door._

_James and Lily paled considerably, and Lily asked, "Are you expecting anyone?" _

_James mutely shook his head. "You?" _

_Lily shook her head as well._

_When the sound of the door breaking down reached the living room, James realized what was going on, and handed Harry to Lily immediately._

_"Lily, it's him! Take Harry and run! I'll hold him off!" _

_Lily had reluctantly taken her son, and looked at her true love for what could very well have been the last time. She kissed him quickly on the lips, and ran up the stairs to her son's nursery…_

_*End Flashback*_

"If H-Harry's gone." Lily hiccupped. "Then…where is he?"

"You m-mean he wasn't upstairs?" James asked, struggling to maintain a calm and collected façade.

"No." Lily said, looking confused. The faintest glimmer of hope began to ignite in her chest, and a small smile crept its way onto her face. "Do you think-"

"How?" James asked, looking like he wanted to believe that his son was alive but knowing that it wasn't possible. "_No one _can survive the Killing Curse, Lily."

"And on that note-" Lily continued, acting as though she hadn't heard James at all. "Then how are – how are _we _here? I _remember _dying, James. How are we _here_?"

"I…don't know." James admitted. He took Lily's hand in his own, and stood up on shaky legs. Together, they stepped into what was left of their living room, and sat down on the now not so pearly white couch from the memory they had both just shared. "I think," James continued. "That we should see Dumbledore, or someone. They'll know what's going on."

"B-But we can't Apparate into Hogwarts," Lily told James. "Surely you know that. And I don't think it would lead to the best reaction if we just 'popped up' in Hogsmeade if we really _did _die."

"Are you s-sure this isn't just some awful dream, Lils?" James asked, his sensitive side showing through his wide and child-like hazel eyes.

"If it _is _all just a dream, then I would love nothing more than to wake up at this _moment,_" Lily sighed, pressing a cold and clammy hand to her forehead. "But I think this is real, James."

"I was hoping you wouldn't say that," James murmured. "When you _think _something, you're usually right."

Lily allowed the tiniest of smiles. "More often than not."

"So what should we do?" James asked, wrinkling his eyebrows in confusion. "We don't even know how long it's been since…_it _happened. I mean, if we _did _die – and if we really did, I think we're taking it rather well, all things considered – then there's no telling how long we were _dead._"

"I don't know," Lily mused. "I mean…I know _somewhere _we could go, but as more of a last resort than anything. It's just someplace I know that we could go to if we have Floo Powder or something to get to Dumbledore."

"Where? I don't have any ideas, Lils, this is _all _yours." James said.

"Do you feel much like meeting my sister, James?"

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><p>"Sirius, no. We <em>can't <em>just 'pop up' on Harry – he'll kill you on the spot. _We saw you die. _He won't believe it's _really _you unless we set the situation up properly." Remus Lupin said for the fiftieth time.

"If it were me, I wouldn't want Harry to waste a single breath – I'd want to know _immediately. _I'm not waiting Remus – I'll Apparate there _now._" Sirius said in a determined voice. His tone left no room for argument, and Remus sighed – _again._

"Are you forgetting that he's still at school, Padfoot? And you _can't _Apparate into Hogwarts." Remus reminded his old friend. It was still surreal that the two were speaking at all – just a few short hours ago, Remus had been witness to Sirius's tragic and untimely death, and now, the two of them were chatting over a drink.

"Then I'll walk there," Sirius said certainly. "Or run, as Padfoot. I'm going to get to him."

"But school lets out in just a few days," Remus reasoned. "And then Harry will be back to his Aunt and Uncle's, and we _can _Apparate there. Or – if you're _that _impatient – we could probably even pick him up from King's Cross or something. But we _have _to talk to Dumbledore or someone about your sudden reappearance into life."

"If James suddenly came back to life, I wouldn't want _him _to see Dumbles before he saw me." Sirius mumbled, almost too low for Remus to hear. The werewolf sighed; Sirius Black was a _hopeless _case.

"I'm sorry, Sirius." Remus said sadly. "But unless you'd like to watch _your _fifteen year old godson attempt murder, we should wait. You _know _he won't believe it's you at first, Paddy. We'll _just_ have to _wait_."

"Patience," Sirius grimaced. "The _one _thing I'm _not _good at."

"Obviously," Remus sighed. "If you were patient, none of this would be a problem."

"Oh, shove off." Sirius grumbled, taking a sip of the tea Remus had made him just minutes ago. Sirius's bitter and sour tone caused Remus to laugh slightly, and he took a drink of his own tea – the Firewhiskey had been put away while the tea was being made, as neither man wanted impaired judgment during such a confusing and crazy time.

"Shall we go see Dumbledore?" Remus asked, standing up.

"No. If we can get to Hogwarts to see _him,_ then _why _can't we go to Hogwarts to see Harry?" Sirius asked, raising an eyebrow. Remus sighed. _Again._

"Sirius, I _thought _I'd made this clear." Remus said. "Listen to me – Harry, Will. Try. To. Kill. You. I never would have imagined him having enough anger to _torture _Bellatrix…but he tried to. He's hurt, Sirius, you don't know _what _he's capable of."

"You're talking about him like he's bloody Voldemort – I talked to him, Remus. He's a good person, he _wouldn't _kill me. And I wouldn't let him. _Just _let me see him, even if it's only as Padfoot." Sirius begged, pleading at Remus with his best puppy dog eyes. Sirius had always been good at them, those eyes; since his Animagus was a dog, it all came naturally.

"_If _by some _coincidence _you should _happen _to see Harry _on the way _to Dumbledore's Office, _then _you can see him as _Padfoot. _That's my criteria. Agreed?"

"Fine."

* * *

><p>Sirius and Remus had used Floo Powder to get into Hogwarts. With Umbridge gone, they didn't have to worry about walking through the halls of Hogwarts, but just to be safe, they <em>hadn't <em>Floo'd into Dumbledore's Office – they didn't want to risk _anything. _They had actually Floo'd into Hogsmeade, and had used an old secret passageway to get into the school. Sirius was as Padfoot, naturally, and the duo wasn't far from the Headmaster's Office. Sirius looked left and right for _any _sign of Harry. He wanted to see his godson _so _badly.

Instead of the young raven-haired wizard, however, Sirius caught sight of a redhead clearly on his way to the kitchens.

Ron…

"No, Sirius." Remus whispered, following Sirius's line of vision to Ron. "That's _not _Har-"

But it was too late. Padfoot walked over to Ron, and Remus whacked himself in the head. He knew that there was no chance of prying Padfoot away from the young wizard without revealing his identity. With nothing else to do and nowhere else to go, Remus gave up and headed towards Dumbledore's Office alone. He would tell Albus about Sirius _without _Sirius present, and then _force _Dumbledore to get Sirius _away _from Harry.

Surely the old Headmaster would see it the same way as Remus…right?

* * *

><p>Ron Weasley crept through the hallways of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He was headed towards the kitchens. He was hungry, since he'd missed dinner, and he wanted to get something for his best friend, Harry Potter, to eat, too. Harry hadn't really wanted to eat much all day, and Ron understood completely, but he still wanted to offer food.<p>

The reason Harry was so upset was because his godfather, Sirius Black, had died just a few hours ago. Ron sighed, and continued on his way.

A sudden movement in the shadows pulled Ron's attention away from the portrait he was looking at, and the next thing he knew, he was being excessively licked by a dog.

"Get off me!" Ron complained, trying to back away from the animal. But the large black dog was bloody persistent, and refused to back down.

"I said get _off!_" Ron yelled. "I'll get Harry Potter down here, and he'll hex you into the next _century!_"

The threat didn't quite have the effect Ron had been hoping for. The words seemed to only make the dog _more _excited, and if possible, Ron was sure the animal would be jumping up and down in happiness. Ron suppressed the urge to roll his eyes, and he decided to just give up on the kitchens and head back to the Common Room. Much to his disappointment, however, the dog followed him.

"Go _away,_" Ron groaned. "All _you'll _do is upset Harry!"

Ron recognized the big dog who was following him; how could he not? It had dragged him into the Whomping Willow nearly three years before. It was the carbon copy of the Grim, it had the same big eyes…it looked exactly the Animagus form of Snuffles, aka, Sirius Black. And Ron didn't want Harry to be upset any more than he already was.

But when Ron entered the boy's dormitory, he didn't have to worry about it at all. The absence of Harry's trunk and a note on his bed told Ron all he needed to know.

_Ron,_

_I've gone back to Privet Drive to collect some things of mine. Y'know, old letters and pictures and stuff. I don't plan on going back there after school ends, I don't care _what _Dumbledore says. Would it be alright with you if I stayed at the Burrow this summer? I'll probably be back by tomorrow; I'm going to my Aunt and Uncle's by the Knight Bus. I don't know how long it'll take to get back, but I've brought my trunk just in case. And thanks for going to the kitchens for me – even if I _didn't _eat anything, it was a nice gesture. See you soon, _

_Harry_

Ron looked down at the giant black dog that had followed him into the dorms, and said as he turned back away, "You're lucky, you are. Harry's going back to Privet Drive to get some of his things, so you won't have to worry about him _seeing _you. _That _would have ended badly."

Ron hadn't been expecting a response out of the animal, so he was terrified out of his _mind _when he heard a gravelly voice say from behind him, "_Just _my luck. I'll be back later."

*****Ron turned back around quickly, just in time to see the back of a man running out of the common room...and the man looked suspiciously like Sirius Black...

_Bloody hell, _Ron thought. _I've gone mental.*****_

* * *

><p>Harry Potter sat alone in the back of the rickety old Knight Bus. He'd been on it for just a few minutes, and it wasn't improving his mood. He didn't feel like listening to Stan's constant chatter, yet he was forced to talk with him. Harry didn't feel like talking - he just wanted to get to Privet Drive, and get out - he was actually <em>looking forward <em>to spending time at the Burrow over the summer, and he _wouldn't _let _that _be ruined, too.

The Knight Bus had just made another stop, and a couple in cloaks got on. As soon as they sat down on a bed not far from Harry, the Knight Bus shot forward again. Harry - with nothing else to do - eavesdropped on the couple's conversation.

"Tell me again exactly _why _we're taking the _Knight Bus _to your sister's?" a man's voice asked behind one of the cloaks.

"Because," a woman replied. "We're too weak to Apparate. I don't want to Splinch, do you?"

"No, but it _would _be faster - is the Floo Network even _open _at her place? From what you've told me, she doesn't sound very pro-magic." the man said.

"She's not." the woman grumbled in annoyance. "But it's worth a shot. We can't go anywhere else, and we _have _to know if Harry's-"

The mention of his name intrigued Harry further, and he was unknowingly creeping towards the couple as they continued their conversation.

"Lils, there's nothing we can do. We _have _to find out the information _before _we upset ourselves." the man said.

"Lily?" Harry whispered to himself. That had been his mum's name...

"But James," the woman - Lily - moaned in sadness. "What if he's gone? Oh, my _poor _baby..."

"Er...excuse me?" Harry asked quietly. He instantly wished he hadn't said anything, but it was too late to take the words back now. The couple looked at him, and the woman gasped.

"James!" she cried into in the man - James's - shoulder. "Why are there _two _of you?"

"That's not me." James said. "Look, he can't be more than fifteen."

"What-What's your name?" Lily asked, removing the hood from her cloak. James did the same, and Harry gasped, his hand twitching towards his pocket - towards his wand.

"Harry Potter."

* * *

><p><strong>Okay! That's that! Did you catch where I'm going with this? Lily &amp; James are on their way to the Dursley's to use the Floo Network (which they plan on opening there) to get to Dumbledore, Harry's on his way to the Dursley's to get some of his things so that he can live at Ron's for the summer, but they met up on the Knight Bus, and the chaos shall ensue! And Sirius is going to the Dursley's to try to find Harry. What do <em>YOU <em>think is going to happen? I dunno! The more reviews _I _get, the sooner _you _lot find out! I hope you liked the chapter!**

**marauderette-47**

***Editing Note: rubina pointed out to me in a review that I accidentally had Sirius Apparating out of Hogwarts when I said that it could not be done. While said author _could _have been nicer about it, I apologize for the error and hope that I corrected it sufficiently. And in answer to her question, _yes _I do check my work, but no one's perfect and it was a small mistake that I overlooked. I'm sorry! But I'm working on Chapter 3 now, so it should be out soon!**


	3. Tears and Jinxes

**Yes, They're Seriously Back!**

**By: marauderette-47**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters. Am I JK Rowling? No? Then I don't own it:)**

**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews! This is my last update today, but enjoy the chapter! I hope it meets expectations:) The emotions behind the reunion was hard to capture, as I didn't want them moping the whole chapters, but immediately getting back to normal would be a bit too difficult in the current climax, so I hope I found a happy medium:) Enjoy!**

**PS: I know that during explanations, Harry doesn't tell his parents EVERYTHING - I have a reason for that! Harry is very modest - he doesn't want to brag about all his accomplishments. And Lily and James will find out in due time, but I think Harry thought his parents just wanted to know the important details about their friends and the future they're currently in. Okay, that's it! Thanks for reading!**

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><p><strong>Chapter Three: Tears and Jinxes<strong>

"What-What's your name?" Lily asked, removing the hood from her cloak. James did the same, and Harry gasped, his hand twitching towards his pocket – towards his wand.

"Harry Potter." Harry said carefully, a bit confused. Harry wasn't an arrogant person, and he _hated _his fame, but he'd grown quite used to _everyone _in the Wizarding World _knowing _him. Even if the two people seated in front of him _were _Death Eaters, why would they ask such a stupid question?

"That's impossible," James whispered, surveying every bit of Harry. Lily, meanwhile, was hugging and crying the young man who'd just said her son's name.

"Oh, Harry!" Lily cried, holding onto her son. Harry was far too surprised and shocked to do much else but sit there while his 'mother' cried over him.

"Lily, that's not Harry," James tried to reason. "He's a teenager!"

"You're not my parents," Harry said, once he finally found his voice. "My parents are dead! They've been dead since I was _one_! I can't _take _this anymore! First I lose my parents, _now _I've lost Sirius _and _I have to be reminded of it all!"

"Sirius?" James asked. _That _had certainly caught his attention. "_Sirius Black_?"

"DON'T!" Harry bellowed. It hurt too much. "Don't say his name! Just leave me alone!"

Harry got up to leave, but Lily touched his hand at the last minute and whispered in a tortured voice, "_Please. _If you _are _my son, _please _sit down and talk to us."

The words had come out of Lily's mouth so pained and anguished that Harry could not help but sit back down. He was defeated. He couldn't _fight _anymore. He'd already lost everything – what else _was _there?

"Maybe we s-should talk upstairs." James said shakily. "Less people."

Without another sound, the three people walked up to the top floor of the Knight Bus, which was completely deserted. They sat down on the largest bed they could find, and stared at each other.

"What's your full name?" James asked Harry, getting right down to business.

"Harry James Potter." Harry said, almost numbly.

"And your birthday?" James inquired.

"July 31st, 1980."

"The names of your parents?" Lily asked, joining the conversation.

"Lily and James Potter."

"James!" Lily exclaimed. "It's him, it's really him! It's Harry!" Lily enveloped Harry in the largest hug of the latter's life, and swore to herself that she'd never let him go again.

"I'm glad that convinced you," Harry said sarcastically. "But that doesn't exactly prove to _me _that my _parents _– who have been _dead _for _fourteen years _– are now miraculously alive."

"Harry," James began, trying to hold back tears. "I don't expect you to believe us right away. It sounds as though you've had a terribly difficult life. I don't even _know _how we're back – but the important thing is that we _are. _It'll take _everyone _a bit to get used to this, but I want to try because your mother and I _love _you with everything in us. We want to _know _you…starting with what happened…_that night."_

Harry wasn't sure what it was, but something in James's voice convinced him. Harry just somehow _knew _these people – he knew deep in his heart that these were his parents. But he still needed _some _sort of proof before he managed to get his heart broken _again._

"If you _prove _to me that you're really my parents," Harry said in his most collected tone of voice. "Then I will tell you _everything._ Right here, right now, on this bus."

"How can we prove it, sweetheart?" Lily asked, her motherly side completely taking over.

"D-Dad." Harry said shakily, trying the word out. "You're an Animagus, aren't you?"

"Yes." James confirmed, nodding.

"What _is _your Animagus?" Harry asked.

"A stag." James said.

"Called…?"

"Prongs."

"Would you transform?" Harry asked. This was it – the final test. _If _James could successfully transform into Prongs, then Harry would believe that this was really his father and his mother. Harry knew that he would recognize the Animagus immediately – according to…to _Sirius, _it was identical to Harry's Patronus.

"Certainly," James said, getting off the bed. He stood in the middle of the floor, and transformed with a _pop!_ In James's place was a beautiful stag, glossy brown and strong. He pranced for a few minutes, swinging his antlers back and forth. He came over to where Harry and Lily were still sitting on the bed, looking awestruck, and licked his wife's face.

"Ew, James!" Lily laughed, wiping the stag-saliva off her cheek. "Get off!"

Prongs transformed back into James, and gave his son a wide grin. "Proof enough?"

"Dad!" Harry exclaimed. In that one moment, there were no words to describe the way that Harry Potter was feeling. Happiness was the understatement of the century. Harry enveloped his parents in the largest hug in the world and held onto them tightly, refusing to ever let them go again. For a few minutes, the sting of the loss of Sirius was numbed, and Harry only felt the love of his parents. He also decided in that moment, that if he ever had to face a Dementor again, _this _was the memory he would be choosing to ignite his Patronus – this feeling of love and want was so strong, Harry knew that _anything _that tried to stand up against it would lose.

"H-How?" Harry asked, wiping a tear from his cheek. He knew that it must have been emotional for his parents, as well; they obviously didn't have a clue what was going on or _why _their son was fifteen, yet they still treated him with love and hugged him and comforted him.

"We don't know," Lily admitted reluctantly. Harry barely heard her words; he decided that there was no sound in the world more beautiful than his mother's voice, and he was mesmerized by it.

"We woke up in Godric's Hollow," James explained, sitting right in between Harry and Lily. "And the last thing either of us remembered was facing Voldemort."

Harry felt a sort of thrill go through him as his father said the words – he was so proud of his parents. They weren't afraid to say Voldemort's name, either.

"I think I pretty much know the story," Harry said, sad that _he _would have to do most of the talking – he wanted to hear his parents' voices. "But it'll be a long story."

"We've got time." Lily reminded him, reaching over James to put an arm around her son. She wanted to hold onto him tightly, so that he wouldn't disappear all of a sudden. She couldn't bear to lose him again – it would kill her, she knew it.

"Alright," Harry began. "Well, Voldemort came to Godric's Hollow to kill me."

James felt pride in his son at that moment; he was so elated to know that his son wasn't scared of some stupid name.

"And when mum cast herself between Voldemort's Killing Curse and me, I was protected. With a special kind of magic that was evoked when she died for me." Harry explained slowly. "And when mum was g-gone and Voldemort tried to kill me again, the curse sort of…rebounded, I guess, and it destroyed Voldemort's powers."

"_You _defeated Voldemort?" James asked incredulously. "_My _little baby boy _defeated _the most dangerous Dark Wizard of the age?"

Harry shrugged off his father's pride. "I always sort of gave the credit to you and mum – if it hadn't been for you two, I would have died just like everyone else."

"But you _didn't _die," Lily pointed out. "You must be famous!"

"Unfortunately." Harry grumbled. "I'm glad I didn't grow up with that fame, though."

"What do you mean?" James asked. "Surely Sirius wouldn't have-"

"I didn't grow up with Sirius." Harry explained. "I just met him t-two years ago."

"Who did you grow up with then, Darling?" Lily asked in a sweet, motherly tone.

"My Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon," Harry said, waiting for the explosion from his parents.

"And just _who _sent you to live there?" Lily snapped.

"It was stated _in our will _that you were to live with _Sirius _if anything happened to us!" James yelled.

"Sirius was in Azkaban," Harry said slowly, allowing the words to sink into his parents' minds. Nothing was said for a very long time, and then James asked strained,

"How long?"

"Twelve years." Harry said quietly, knowing somehow _exactly _what his father meant, and not needing to ask for a specification.

"Twelve years…" James said, trying to wrap his mind around the concept. "He must have been through _hell_."

"Oh, poor Sirius." Lily murmured, placing a hand over her mouth.

"But he escaped," Harry said, trying to lighten the mood a bit. James looked amused, and Lily looked disbelieving.

"How?" Lily asked.

"His Animagus," James realized. "I'll bet _anything _that's how."

"You're right, dad." Harry said. "He slipped through the bars and swam to shore."

"And did he find you? When was all of this?" Lily asked.

"It was in my third year," Harry said. "Actually, I wanted to _kill _him at first – literally. I'd, er, overheard that he'd betrayed you two and killed Peter Pettigrew. But then I confronted him with my friends Ron and Hermione, and then Professor Lupin sort of showed up, and we confronted Wormtail about _everything._ When I found out that Sirius was innocent, he offered to let me live with him. And I would have, I really would have, but Professor Lupin sort of became a werewolf a few minutes later, and Wormtail escaped, and we couldn't prove that Sirius was innocent."

"Remus became a Professor?" James asked, trying not to laugh.

"For a year," Harry said. "He resigned after that."

"And so Sirius is still on the run?" Lily asked.

"Not exactly," Harry said, already feeling his depressed mood returning. "But there's more to the story than that. Last year, Wormtail helped Voldemort come back to power."

"He didn't?" Lily shouted.

"That stupid, lying, betraying-" James began to rant, but Lily cut him off.

"Let him finish, James!" she snapped.

"So Dumbledore reinstated the Order of the Phoenix, and Sirius and Remus were members. And it's kind of difficult to explain, but I have this…_connection _with Voldemort. Like I can see into his mind. And Voldemort found out, and…_implanted _this vision of him tormenting Sirius with the Cruicartis Curse in the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic. I should have known it was a trick!" Harry growled in frustration, several tears falling freely from his eyes.

"Shh, shh…" Lily soothed, rubbing circles on Harry's back. "What happened, love?"

"Some of my friends and I went there to find Sirius, but we r-ran into these Death Eaters that wanted me to get them a prophecy. Voldemort never really had Sirius there!" Harry yelled in frustration. "And all of us, we were about to die, but the Order came…and so did Sirius. He was trying to protect me! But we were in the Death Chamber, and there was this Death Eater…Bellatrix LeStrange, and she – she –"

"She what?" James murmured, feeling as though ice water had been injected into his veins.

"SHE KILLED HIM!"

Since James seemed beyond words, Lily asked through her own tears, "When did all of this happen?"

"A few hours ago." Harry said venomously, trying to get control on his breathing.

"You just lost him a few hours ago?" Lily asked incredulously. "Oh, Harry, no _wonder _you were so defensive about us! Oh, come here, sweetie."

Harry felt pathetic as he sank into his mother's arms, but he couldn't bring himself to care much. He just lay in his mum's arms and cried. His mother tried to console him, but she found that it was impossible. All she could do was be there for him.

James, too, was crying. He was crying that he hadn't been there for his son all this time. He cried for the world, since Voldemort was back. He cried for Harry, since the boy had pretty much just lost the only father he'd ever known, and he cried for Sirius, the best friend whose life ended up being for nothing.

All three Potters were so focused on each other, that they didn't even realize they had missed their stop at Privet Drive nearly a half hour before…

* * *

><p>Sirius – after running out of the boys' dormitory in Gryffindor Tower <strong>(I fixed that in the last chapter. I accidentally had Sirius Apparating from Hogwarts, which you can't do. If you want to read the correction, it doesn't change much, but it fits better. Thanks!)<strong>– found himself in Hogsmeade. Once he was certain he was out of the view of the public, he Apparated. He was finally at Privet Drive.

Sirius found number 4 with ease, and knocked twice. He didn't care that it was so late and all the Dursleys were probably asleep – he _hoped _he woke them up. He wanted to see Harry _immediately, _and _no one _was going to get in his way.

"Can I help you?" a half-asleep Vernon Dursley asked Sirius as he opened the front door.

Sirius pointed his wand at the fat oaf, and growled, "Where is Harry Potter?"

The sight of the wand woke Vernon up completely, and he stared at Sirius with wide eyes. "W-Who are you? What do you want? Get away from my family!"

"Where is my godson?" Sirius asked blackly. **(Hee hee…punny, right?)**

"Godson?" Vernon asked. Realization dawned on Vernon, and instead of looking angry, he paled considerably. "Don't kill me!" he begged. "The boy's not here!"

"I know for a _fact _that he is." Sirius growled. "And if I find out that you're _hiding _him from me-"

"We're not!" Vernon assured who he thought was a mass-murderer. "If he's here, then he snuck in! He hasn't come in from that _freaky _school of his!"

"Look for him!" Sirius screamed. "I need to see him _now!_"

When Vernon mumbled "Yes sir!" and shuffled into the house, Sirius cracked a small smile. How easy is it was to wind up Vernon Dursley.

Ten minutes later, Vernon came back to the front door, to find Sirius still standing there, looking menacing. "He's not here! I've looked _everywhere, _even his old cupboard!"

"_His _old cupboard?" Sirius asked, raising an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"The cupboard he used to sleep in," Vernon said shrugging it off. Only after he said them did he realize what words he'd spoken, and he paled again and covered his mouth with his fat, beefy hand.

"_HE SLEPT IN A CUPBOARD?" _Sirius screeched, pointing his wand once again at Dursley's throat. "_Impedimenta!"_ Immediately, Vernon was thrusted into the air. Sirius realized that his screaming was going to be a problem, so he cast a quick _"Silencio!"_ and watched in amusement as he twirled the fat old hippo through the air.

Once Sirius was satisfied, he threw Vernon back on the ground, and Apparated away in disgust. He didn't know where on Earth Harry could be, but he knew he _had _to find him. And soon.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, not <em>as bad <em>of a cliffy as last chapter, right? Like I said, probably the last update today, but I hope you enjoyed it! And just to let you all know, I'm only updating so much because I've had parts of this story written for FOREVER, and it's the weekend, so updates are generally easier:) Weekdays...eh;/ but Whatever! If you read this, PLEASE review! I love reviews! They keep me going:) Thanks!**

**-marauderette-47**


	4. Firewhiskey

**Yes, They're Seriously Back!**

**By: marauderette-47**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters. Am I JK Rowling? No? Then I don't own it:)**

**A/N: Here's the next chapter! I hope you guys like it! It was fun to write:) Things will probably be getting slowly lighter as the story progresses - sorry to make you guys sad! But I hope you like this anyway:) And sorry it's so short! I tried to add as much to it as I could, but I _really _wanted to cut it off at a cliffy! Sorry! Enjoy!**

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><p><strong>Chapter Four: Firewhiskey<strong>

"Professor, _please _-" Remus began again, but Dumbledore cut him off. Again.

"Remus," Dumbledore said softly. "I think that you're upset over our loss of Sirius. Think rationally, my friend. Do you truly believe that he is back from the dead?"

"Yes!" Remus panted. "Professor, I _saw _him! We had a drink together-"

"Then perhaps it was just a drunken hallucination," Dumbledore said thoughtfully.

"No, no, no!" Remus shouted, frustrated. "Professor, he was _at _Grimmauld Place with me!"

"Grimmauld Place, you say?" Dumbledore asked sadly. Remus nodded. "Then Remus," Dumbledore continued. "Perhaps it was just _being _in that house. It held so many emotions and memories, that it ignited a mirage of someone whom you cared about that is now dead. Remus, there is _no _spell that can bring the dead back from the grave. This is what I would do if I were you: I would go home. _Home._ And do something productive. Listen to some music. Read a book. Get your mind off things. If Sirius is still, er, _there _after all of that, then come see Madame Pomphrey. She'll give you something to help-"

"No Albus," Remus said. "Sirius is alive. I don't need _anything._"

"If he is alive," Dumbledore began. "Then where is he?"

"I _told _you!" Remus huffed. "We were coming up here to speak with you, but Padfoot saw Ron and chased after him in his dog form. He wanted to see Harry."

"Ah, that is another point," Dumbledore said calmly. "Harry is rather…delicate, at the moment. He's just been given a lot of information and no time to deal with it. It would be a great help to me, Remus, if you did not mention 'Sirius' to Harry whatsoever. Not unless _I _give you the 'okay' that he is back. The last thing we need is for poor Harry to get his heart broken again."

"I'm not giving up on this, Professor." Remus warned sternly. "Sirius _is _back."

"Remus," Dumbledore sighed again. "You need to accept Sirius's death. Just like you had to accept the death of James and Lily."

"No," Remus smirked sourly, shaking his head. "No, I _still _haven't accepted that, Sir. Maybe you don't remember James like I do, but that boy did not appreciate being told what to do _or _when to do it. I still wake up sometimes hoping that he found some crazy way to come back to life. I don't think he was ready to die, Dumbledore, and I think that the same applied to Sirius. But I can see that we're getting nowhere. I'll grab my old oaf of a friend and get out of here. Thank you for your time, Sir."

As Remus left Dumbledore's office and began to stalk through Hogwarts looking for Sirius, he began to wonder if maybe he really _was _going mental. But no, he'd _seen _Sirius…hadn't he?

* * *

><p>"I think we missed our stop," Harry said quietly. He, James, and Lily were lying on beds on the top floor of the Knight Bus. They'd decided that after everything that had happened, they all needed some sleep. They hadn't known what they were going to do next, but they <em>weren't <em>going to be separated.

"There's no need to go to Petunia's now, dear." Lily assured her son in that quiet, soothing voice of hers. "I don't, however, know _where _we're going. James?"

James had been very quiet over the last hour. He'd been crying silently, not that he let his wife and son see _that _bit. He was devastated over everything that had happened – his old friend had betrayed his whole family, his _best _friend had just so recently died, and his son had had to grow up without a family that loved him.

"We could go to Potter Manor," James said in a hoarse voice.

"Has school let out yet, darling?" Lily asked Harry, throwing a concerned glance towards James.

"Nearly," Harry said slowly. "But I don't mind missing the feast. I don't feel much like eating anyways. And I'll write my friends to let them know where it is I am."

"Alright," Lily sighed. "Do you think the House Elves are still there, James?"

"They should be," James shrugged indifferently. "We never freed them. They should be up keeping it, as well. It should be fit for human habitation."

A pang of pain stabbed Harry in the chest as he heard his father's words. They'd sounded so similar to Sirius's not long ago at all…

_"Making this place fit for human habitation…"_

"What's Potter Manor?" Harry asked, trying to get his mind off of his godfather.

Lily smiled. "It was your father's house growing up. I've only been there a few times, but it was _huge! _You'll have your own room, your own bathroom, Merlin, maybe even your own _kitchen! _After Mr. and Mrs. Potter passed away, James inherited the place, and instructed its House Elves to keep it in good condition in case he ever wanted to move back there. It's quite a nice place."

_And quite different from the cupboard under the stairs, _Harry thought, smiling inwardly. If someone had told him when he was, say, ten that all of this would be happening to him, he'd have asked you if you were mental. But this was truly happening, and Harry couldn't have been happier.

Unless, perhaps, Sirius was part of the picture.

Harry's thoughts kept trailing back to Sirius. And, in a strange way, having his parents back made it a little worse in some ways. Sirius Black's best friends, whom he would have _died _for and missed like crazy – were alive again, and Sirius couldn't even see them. And Harry still believed that the whole thing was truly all his fault.

"Everything I love dies…" Harry mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Alright, what's wrong?" Lily snapped at her son.

"What?" Harry asked, wrinkling his eyebrows in confusion.

"James _always _does that when he's upset – you know, rubs the back of his neck. So what's wrong?" Lily asked, her tone softening a bit. She went to the bed at which her son was seated, and put her arm around him. Harry let his head fall on his mother's shoulders, and inhaled her lilac scent. The scent was vaguely familiar, and triggered a long forgotten memory, a memory that gave Harry comfort and love – two things he hadn't felt in such a long time.

"It's Sirius," Harry whispered. He didn't want his father to hear him – he knew that if James cared about Sirius half as much as Harry guessed Sirius had cared about James, then James was probably curled in a ball on his bed crying at the moment. And Harry didn't want to make his father's pain any worse. Though he had technically just _met _him, Harry loved his father, and didn't want to pain him.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Lily asked softly. "Or are you more like James? Do you just want to grieve in silence?"

"I don't know," Harry admitted reluctantly. "I wish I could just take it back. Make it like it never happened. It's just not fair! All he wanted was to see the both of you again, and he can't! You're back, and he _can't!_ And it's my entire fault!" Harry had never been so open with his emotions before, but he held nothing back now. It was mostly because he found it quite easy to admit things to his mother. He'd never known what a mother was _really _supposed to be like. His Aunt Petunia had never really treated him with love, and Mrs. Weasley always _smothered _him, and never treated him like she did her own sons. It was a strange and extraordinary experience to know what _his _mother was really like.

"Harry," James said suddenly, sitting up and coming to sit by his wife and son. Harry and Lily politely ignored James's red-rimmed eyes and puffy nose. "You listen to me _now. _Sirius's death was absolutely and completely _not your fault. _At all. Padfoot was always the rash one. Never thought things through before he just jumped into them. If he went to the Ministry to protect you when he wasn't supposed to even leave Headquarters, then that proves one thing; he loved you. And he would've died for you. He died to make sure that you _lived. _And he wouldn't want you to live in regret."

James sighed, and rubbed the back of his neck just like Harry had a few minutes before. "I'm going to go downstairs and tell Ernie where to drop us off at. I'll be back later."

James got up from the bed, and took the steps that led to the first floor of the bus slowly, and Lily sighed sadly. "He's hurting." She murmured.

"He does a good job of hiding it." Harry noted.

"Are you like him, in that way?" Lily wondered.

Harry shrugged. "People usually can't tell if I'm upset unless they know me really well."

"Like James, then." Lily confirmed. "He missed you Harry, I can tell. And he's beating himself up over Sirius, I can tell that, too. This is all so messed up!"

"Yeah," Harry agreed. "It is."

Meanwhile, James was sitting on the first floor of the Knight Bus, on a bed in the very back. After speaking with Ernie, he quickly made the realization that himself and his family were the only ones on the bus. So he didn't feel bad at all about conjuring up a small flask of Firewhiskey and drinking his troubles away.

"I don't drink _that _much," James mumbled to himself as he took another sip. And it was true; in fact, James hardly _ever _drank. Just when he was _really _torn up about something. He remembered one time, himself and Sirius had gotten buzzed at the Three Broomsticks after Lily had hexed him for asking her out for the thousandth time.

"You'd be surprised, Prongs," Sirius had laughed after his second shot of Firewhiskey. "Firewhiskey does _wonders _when the 'females' are exceptionally difficult to deal with _and_, in moderation, it can really zone you out."

"When do you _ever _do anything in moderation?" James had chortled.

"Touché," Sirius had muttered, ordering another shot and winking at Madame Rosmerta as she handed him the drink.

"I'm sorry Harry," James mumbled to himself, taking another drink. "I always only wanted the best for you."

Suddenly, the Knight Bus came to a stop, and let another man on…

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><p>Sirius was grumbling to himself as he walked down Magnolia Crescent. Of course, it was <em>just <em>his luck that Harry wasn't home. He walked about a mile before he remembered that he was a Wizard, and he used his wand to summon the Knight Bus. He didn't really _need_ to take it, but it would be funny to see the expression on peoples' faces if the 'supposedly dead' Sirius Black hopped on board.

"Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard," the teenage conductor said as he got off the enormous bus. "My name is Stan Shunpike, and I will be your conductor for this evening." He dropped the 'formal' act almost as soon as he was done reading his prompt card, and looked up at Sirius.

"Where you headed?" he asked.

"Number 12, Grimmauld Place." Sirius said with disdain; oh, how he _hated _his home.

"And what's your name?" Stan asked.

"I'm known by _many _names." Sirius sighed dramatically, clutching his heart. "Padfoot, Snuffles…but you, Stan Shunpike, can call me _Sirius Black!_"

"But- but your dead! And a murderer! You're not getting' on this bus, you're not!" Stan said, going paler than Sirius had ever seen anyone go before.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I say Sirius Black?" Sirius mused amusedly. "I meant Remus Lupin."

"Oh, phew!" Stan said, wiping sweat off his brow. "Choo had me worried there, Remmy! Well, hop aboard!"

Sirius smirked and got on the Knight Bus. He noted that there weren't many people on, just some drunk passed out in the back. Rolling his eyes, Sirius went up the stairs to the top floor of the Knight Bus – when he and James used to ride it, they'd always _loved _going to the very tippy-top just to be funny and spontaneous.

"Besides," James had told him once. "I don't fancy being on the first floor and able to smell Ernie's _breath, _do you?"

As Sirius neared the top of the steps, he heard a woman and a boy crying. If there was one thing Sirius wasn't good it, it was consoling people, and he _didn't _want to be caught in the middle of that. So he silently crept back down to the first floor, and sat in a seat not far from the wizard who was passed out. Sirius wasn't sure that the wizard _was _unconscious, as he had a hood up over his head, but he was snoring so Sirius just sort of guessed that he was.

"Lucky bloke," he mumbled, noticing the small flask of what was obviously Firewhiskey in the wizard's hand. "Wish _I _had some of that – but Moony'd probably kill me – stupid werewolf."

The man behind Sirius suddenly snapped his head up, and Sirius wanted to whack himself in the head - he should have been quieter! The drunk probably heard the whole 'werewolf' thing, and was going to report Remus, or Sirius could try his hand at a Memory Charm, even though he'd probably screw it up and kill someone-

"Ignore me," Sirius whispered to the man who was now looking at him strangely. "I...er, I'm mental. I don't know what I'm saying...oh look! A Nargle!"

"What?" the man croaked. "Whasanargle?"

"Nothing, nothing..." Sirius muttered. "Forget it."

"Kay."

"Wait-" the man said, rubbing his eyes and dropping his flask. Sirius was agitated – he was so stupid! He had to be more careful! Now this idiot was going to be all suspicious –

"Yeah?" Sirius asked nonchalantly.

"Y-You said 'Moony'…" the man croaked, a loud and long yawn breaking off the rest of his sentence.

"_And_?" Sirius asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Hang on," the man mumbled. "Lemme do a-a-a Sobering Charm."

"I got it," Sirius said, retrieving his wand and rolling his eyes. This guy reminded him of James – James hardly _ever _drank, but when he did it was bad, and Sirius was the best at Sobering Charms.

When the man felt slightly better, he looked up at Sirius again, but his 'Thank you' died in his throat. All he found himself able to say was, "Padfoot?"

* * *

><p><strong>SO CLOSE! OHMYGOSH! CLIFFHANGER! Lol, I hope you liked it! If you read it, please review! They really and truly inspire me:) Thank you!<strong>

**-marauderette-47**


	5. A Duel To Rival Voldemort

**Yes, They're Seriously Back!**

**By: marauderette-47**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters. Am I JK Rowling? No? Then I don't own it:)**

**A/N: Sorry for the huge cliffhanger! But thank you for all of the reviews! Chapter 4 had the most reviews out of ALL the chapters - keep it up, faithful readers! Thank you SO much! Enjoy! Btw, I know that this is shorter than all my other chapters- if you read my newest oneshot "A Godfather's Love", it says in the A/N in the beginning that I've been experiencing writer's block for this story:P After this, though, I think I know where I'm going - but hey, next chapter will be the big 'reveal' to Remus, so I hope that that hint makes up for the short chapter!**

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><p><strong>Chapter Five: A Duel To Rival Voldemort<strong>

Lily and Harry had been in each other's arms for a little while now. It was amazing how quickly and easily Harry had accepted her – but it was only to be expected. It was his mum, and he loved her so much already. She just had a way of making others feel better without even really doing much – one of the reasons she was loved by so many. But even _she _couldn't act cool and collected when a booming CRASH came from below her and her son.

"What in Merlin's Beard was _that_?" she gasped, standing up. She was followed up by another _BOOM! _and a _SCREECH! _

"Dad's down there," Harry realized aloud.

"Oh, no." Lily sighed, shaking her head. "Come on, let's see who he's managed to physically harm the whole fifteen minutes we left him alone."

Lily took Harry's hand in her own, and led him quickly down the steps. The moment she was on the main floor of the Knight Bus, she had to dodge a curse being thrown her way. She guarded Harry, and crept around the staircase to the side of the bus on a bed. She took note of all the things going on around her.

Ernie was still driving like nothing was wrong, which was strange. He might have been Confunded or something, though. Stan was lying on the ground, obviously under the _Petrificus Totalis _Curse. James was up on his feet, wand out, a livid expression on his face. Another man was on the bus in front of Lily's husband, a similar livid expression on _his _face and _his _wand pointed at James. Lily had completely blocked Harry's view of the duel that was going on between the two wizards, but he could still hear it.

"How _dare _you?" James snarled. "_Reducto!_"

The other wizard – who Lily was _sure _she recognized from somewhere – just barely managed to dodge out of the way of the red jet of light that shot from James's wand.

"You right foul _git!_" the man snarled. "_Stupefy!"_

James moved out of the way, and growled. Lily was shocked; James seemed entirely focused and lethal. Lily actually _feared _for the man James was dueling, Death Eater or not. James shouted something unintelligable, and then cast, "_Impedimenta!"_

The man was hit, and blasted into the air. James held him there, twisting him and turning him. Finally, the Curse wore off, and the man fell back to the ground. Angrily, he spat, _"Expelliarmus!"_

James moved out of the way at the last second, and rounded up on the wizard in front of him. "_Death Eater!_" he growled. "You _dare _to impersonate him to get to _my son_! No! _C-Crucio!_"

James faltered when he used the Unforgiveable, and so it did not affect the man when the bolt of light was shot directly at his chest. However, the man stumbled back and tripped. He fell to the ground, and found himself at the mercy of James's wand.

"NO!" the man roared. "_You're _the good for nothing piece of _slime _here to hurt my godson!"

"STOP IT!" Lily yelled, leaving Harry's side and coming between the two dueling men. "Just _what _is going _on _here?"

"Can't you see, Lils?" James hissed. "This stupid, bast-"

"James! _Not _in front of our son!" Lily screeched eyes wide.

"Fine! This _Death Eater scum _is posing as Sirius to get to Harry!" James yelled. "And I'm trying to get _rid _of him before Harry-"

"S-Sirius?" Harry asked timidly, creeping out from where his mother left him.

"Harry!" Sirius sighed relieved, running to Harry and embracing his godson in a hug. "Thank goodness these _Death Eaters _didn't hurt you before I-"

"Get away from my son!" James bellowed. "NOW!"

"Sirius," Harry whispered, completely ignoring his dad. "Sirius, is it – is it really you? How are you back?"

"It's really me, Harry." Sirius swore quietly. "I swear to it. As to your other question, I'm afraid I lack an answer. I just _am_."

"How do I know it's really you?" Harry asked pathetically, trying and failing to keep the pain, sorrow, and need out of his voice.

"Because," Sirius said. "The ones who love us never really leave us. You can always find them right here." And Sirius – after quoting himself from 2 years before – touched his godson's heart.

"Sirius!" Harry said elated, hugging his godfather for all he was worth.

"Now, to attend to yet _another _piece of business," Sirius muttered, putting a protective arm around Harry and turning around to face James and Lily, who had been watching their private exchange in shock, amazement, and horror.

"You make me _sick,_" Sirius spat. "Posing as a boy's dead parents simply to be cruel to him! Well, you two won't live to see another day!"

As Sirius reached a hand towards his wand, Harry stopped him.

"Sirius, no!" he shouted. "It really is my mum and dad!"

"Harry, they've tricked you," Sirius said through clenched teeth. "No spell can bring back the dead!"

"Coming from a man who just did so himself?" Harry asked skeptically.

"But that's different!" Sirius insisted. "I _just _died! They've been dead for nearly fifteen years!"

"Prove it to me!" James suddenly shouted, anguished. "Prove to me that you're Sirius and I'll prove to you that I'm James!"

At nearly the very same time, James and Sirius transformed into their Animagi forms. At first, Padfoot and Prongs were on the defensive, even _growling _at each other. But as they came closer to each other, and smelled one another, shock was the evident feeling in the air. Both Lily and Harry held their breaths as they watched the dog and the stag accept each other. After a moment of never ending uncertainty, the dog barked with happiness, and _tackled _the stag. Padfoot and Prongs were wrestling. Lily eventually got sick and tired of having no clue what was going on, and so she shouted, "Alright, alright, turn _back _you two! I want to know what's going on!"

Padfoot and Prongs turned back into Sirius and James respectively, but did not speak to Lily at all. Instead, they hugged like two long lost brothers, and even let a few tears slip from their eyes. In a way, they had never felt happier.

"James," Lily whispered. "What's going on?"

James laughed, and wiped the tear that had dared to slip from his hazel eye. He turned to his wife, and said, "It's really Sirius, Lils! He's back!"

"Ah, Flower!" Sirius shouted elatedly. "Long time, no see, eh?"

"Sirius!" Lily laughed, hugging the dog Animagus tightly. "Oh, when Harry told us what happened, we thought we would never see you again!"

"You've no idea," Sirius murmured, and Harry swore he saw a slight tear-track coming from his godfather's eye. So many tears were being shed that night, but now they were no longer out of pain.

"And, um, Sirius?" Lily asked delicately. Sirius turned to the red haired witch, and smiled broadly and confidently.

"Yes, Flower?"

"Which of you killed Stan?" Lily laughed.

"He's not _dead, _Lils." James smirked, rolling his eyes. "But Sirius never _was _good at aim."

"And Ernie?" Lily asked. "How is it he's continued driving without a question?"

"Er…" Sirius muttered. "That was actually James."

"Did you Cunfund him?" Harry asked, his head still spinning. He couldn't decide whether to look at his parents or his godfather; it was all so overwhelming. He finally had a real family, and things couldn't get much better, in his opinion.

"Not exactly," James said guiltily, refusing to meet Lily's eyes. The latter gasped, and covered her lips with her hand.

"You didn't…?" she asked. "You used the _Imperius Curse?_"

"He _did _think I was trying to hurt Harry, Lils." Sirius defended. "What would _you _have done?"

And for that, Lily had no answer.

* * *

><p>Remus Lupin sat alone once again in Grimmauld Place. Against Dumbledore's wishes, of course, he had returned to Headquarters in hopes that he would run into Sirius. Remus had had no luck in locating his old friend at Hogwarts, and wondered where on Earth he could have gotten to.<p>

_Unless Dumbledore was right, _Remus thought glumly. _And it really _was _all just a trick of the mind._

But no, that was _impossible. _Remus had spoken to Sirius – Sirius's empty tea cup in the sink was proof that he'd been sitting in the kitchen at Grimmauld Place not long ago at all.

_I just hope he comes back soon._

Suddenly, the sound of an Apparation put Remus on red-alert. He was still on guard when an old lady entered the kitchen and sat next to Remus.

"Who are you?" Remus demanded, wand out. "What do you want?"

"Oh, relax, Remus!" the old woman laughed. With a small _pop!, _the old lady turned into the young and beautiful face of Nymphadora Tonks. "It's only me."

"Dora!" Remus breathed, putting his wand away. "Don't _scare _me like that."

"Sorry," Tonnks muttered dejectedly. "I just...I didn't want to be alone. I didn't know where else to go that I might find someone who cared for Sirius as much as I did."

In that instant, with those words, Remus _hated _himself. He'd been so selfish! He hadn't been the _only _one who loved Sirius - there was a boatload of others who were distraught about his death as well. In that minute, Remus made a quick decision - one that he probably should of thought over, but didn't. He couldn't just sit there quietly and listen to Dora's unhappiness - he just couldn't.

"Dora," Remus said. "About that...there's something you should...know."

"Yeah?"

"Sirius is...alive." Remus said in a hushed tone. "Right now."

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><p><strong>Did you like it? Review and let me know! I actually let out a little tear of joy at their reunion! :) And I just <em>had <em>to add a bit of Tonks - I LOVE her with Remus! And I know that she should technically be in the hospital at the moment...but I wanted to add her in sooner, so - since this is AU anyway - she never got hurt in the battle:) At least not in _my _version! Hope this small difference from the real plot doesn't upset anyone, but why should it? Who _likes _it when Tonks gets hurt? I, for one, _bawled _when she died! Okay, I'm Siriusly (pun intended;)) rambling. Sorry! But I hope you enjoyed & pretty please review?(:**

**-marauderette-47**

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**Review! *winkwink***


	6. Merrily We Go Along

**Yes, They're Seriously Back!**

**By: marauderette-47**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters. Am I JK Rowling? No? Then I don't own it:)**

**A/N: I'm sorry for the long wait! It's just been SUCH a busy week! But I'm back, and I hope you like the chapter:) I'll try to updated 'A Vacation Through Time' today as well:D Thank you for all of the support and please review!**

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><p><strong>Chapter Six: Merrily We Go Along<strong>

Tonks stood in shock before Remus Lupin for a moment. Her mind seemed to be completely blank. She couldn't think - she didn't know _what _to think. Part of her wondered if Remus was going mad with grief, but he seemed perfectly fine to her. And then another part of her wondered if Remus had been more like the other Marauders than she could have ever guessed. But even if the latter assumption _was _correct, Tonks had never known one of the three true Marauders to be _that _cruel.

Tonks's hair was rapidly changing color as her thought process continued. At first, it was yellow with disbelief. Then, it turned green in sickness and disgust. Then, it turned blue with depression at the thought of her cousin's awful death. Finally, though, Tonks's unpredictable hair settled on red, with anger. Tonks latched on to the emotion, and began to shriek much like Mrs. Black would have.

"Is that supposed to be funny?" Tonks growled angrily, taking a step toward Remus and pointing her wand at him. "Well? _Is _it?"

Remus backed away a few paces in shock. Never before had he seen Nymphadora Tonks in such a fury. But why was she choosing _now _not to believe him?

"Dora," Remus said innocently, thrusting his hands in front of him as a sign of innocence. "I would _never _lie about something so important."

"Remus," Tonks said slowly, blinking back the tears that were quickly forming in her large brown eyes. "My cousin is dead. _Dead. _We watched him die, we _watched _it! We _held Harry back! _We _cried _over him! Nothing can bring back the dead, Remus! So _don't you dare _try to convince me otherwise!"

"Tonks," Remus pleaded, but he could see that the young Auror was past the point of reason, much like Sirius. Huh. Perhaps it was just a Black Family Trait.

"Shut up!" Tonks yelled in pain, her vision completley blurred with tears. "Sirius is gone, Remus! And the sooner you accept that, the better! We _have _to be here for each other, now more than ever! And creating hallucinations for yourself is _not _the answer!"

"I'm not _creating _anything!" Remus assured Tonks. "I saw him, I swear it!"

"Oh, yeah?" Tonks asked cruelly. "And just _where _did you see my _dead _cousin, might I ask?"

"Here!" Remus said, latching onto the opportunity to explain himself. "In this very house, in this very _kitchen! _Scared the magic out of me, too! He was much too real to have been thought up, I swear it!"

Tonks seemed to settle down a little bit, but her hair remained red as a flame. "Remus," she said. "Sometimes, when we want something badly enough, our minds try to satisfy our-"

"No, Dora." Remus said certainly. "This isn't like that. I didn't hallucinate. I'm not mental."

"Then you've left me with no other choice than to assume that you're lying!" Tonks yelled loudly, quite literally shaking the house. Although, that could have just been unpredictable and accidental magic that bursting from her in her rage. "I just don't understand it, Remus! You were always so _kind _- and now you're a liar and a bully and I - I never want to see you again!" As the echo of her final statement rang through the house, Tonks dropped her wand to the floor, and sank to her knees. She curled into a ball and sobbed. The sobs wracked her tiny frame, and Remus had absolutely no idea what to do. Luckily, though, he didn't have to do a thing. A mysterious and amused voice from the doorway brought Tonks and Remus out of their fight.

"Awe, Dora!" the voice laughed sadly. "You're bringing me close to tears, and you know how hard _that _is to do!"

Slowly, Tonks raised her head from the floor and stared at the dark doorway. There was a shadow there, the outline of a man. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, Tonks gasped. There, standing before her, was Sirius Black in all his glory.

She had no option but to believe everything that Remus had just told her - what other explanation was there? There was no body, and so no Death Eaters could have been under the influence of Pollyjuice Potion. And Sirius had always been Tonks's favorite member of her family - she would no him _anywhere. _There was no doubt in her mind at that point - the man standing in the kitchen at Grimmauld Place with her was Sirius. Elated, Tonks's hair turned vibrant purple, and she sprang up from the floor faster than you could say 'Quidditch.' Tonks thrust herself into Sirius arms, and sobbed into his shoulder. Sirius had never been very good at consoling people, and so he awkwardly patted her shoulder and murmured, "There...there?"

Remus laughed at Sirius, almost crying as the girly giggles echoed through the kitchen. Sirius rolled his eyes, and tried to listen in on what Tonks was rapidly whispering to him. She was much too worked up to make much sense to the dog-Animagus, but he was sure he picked out the words, "Only sane cousin...best family member I could have ever asked for...never, ever leave me again...I know I didn't show you much before...love you so much, Sirius...remember when you used to babysit me...bubbles...tears...oh, Sirius!"

Finally, when Tonks had a grip on herself, Sirius and Remus led her into the dining room. They all took seats, and Remus conjured three cups of tea. When things were as calm as could be expected, Tonks broke the ice by asking a shaky, "H-How?"

"Actually, Dora-" Remus said quietly. "Since Sirius doesn't have the answer to your question anyway, I'd like to ask mine. Sirius, where did you go? You made me look like a raving mad _lunatic _in front of Dumbledore!"

Sirius laughed, "What, Dumbles didn't believe I came back from the dead? Didn't believe that the 'recently deceased' Sirius Black's best friend _wasn't _imagining things?"

"Oh, shove off!" Remus complained, rolling his eyes. "Seriously, where _were _you?"

"Remus!" Tonks grumbled from beside the lycanthrope. "_Never _say the word 'serious' in Sirius's presence unless you want him to-"

"Don't worry, Tonks." Sirius laughed, messing up his younger cousin's flaming magenta hair. "Wasn't sure how to work a pun into that one, anyway."

"Sirius." Remus said in his don't-mess-with-me tone.

"Alright, alright, keep your knickers on, Mooney." Sirius laughed. "Alright, well I followed that young ginger fellow-"

"Ron." Remus corrected, rolling his eyes.

"Right, that Ron-Ginger-Fellow to the dormitories, hoping to catch a glimpse of Harry." Sirius shrugged.

"Did you?" Remus asked, taking another sip of his Jasmine Tea.

"Unfortunately, no." Sirius sighed dramatically. "I did not. Our young Prongslet left the ginger a note, saying that he was going to the _Dursley _residence to pick up a few things because he had it implanted in his head that he was going to move into the Burrow."

"So - naturally - you went to Privet Drive." Remus groaned. He didn't say it like a question at all - there _was _no question to be asked. Remus knew Sirius better than anyone else in the world did, except perhaps James, but James was gone and so that left Remus on permanent Sirius-Duty.

"Naturally." Sirius smirked. "But - alas - young Harry was nowhere to be found. And so I gave his Uncle a time he wouldn't forget, then went on my merry way."

"But that just _couldn't _be the end of the story." Tonks laughed. "That would have just been too simple."

"Exactly. So I summoned the Knight Bus to take me _here._" Sirius said seriously.

"But Sirius-" Remus complained, but Sirius cut him off.

"Oh, come _on _Mooney - are you not a Marauder _at all_? You can't _tell _me you wouldn't have _loved _to see the looks-"

"Get on with it!"

"Right, sorry. Okay, so I scared the hell out of Stand Shunpike, but - much to _my _disappointment at least - the Knight Bus was otherwise unoccupied. Except for three people." Sirius said mysteriously, rather like he was spinning a ghost tale than recurring actual events.

"If there were three other people present, then the bus _wasn't_ unoccupied, Sirius." Remus said matter-of-factly.

"Whatever." Sirius complained, rolling his eyes. "So I take a seat in front of this drunk-"

"Always the maker of smart decisions," Remus commented slyly. Tonks whacked him upside the head.

"Ow!" Remus complained. "What was _that _for?"

"Let him finish!" Tonks hissed.

"Right, so I took a seat in front of this drunk, and it turns out I knew the man." Sirius shrugged. "An old friend of ours, as it happens, Mooney."

"Oh?" Remus inquired. "And who, may I ask, was this old friend of ours, Padfoot?"

"You wouldn't believe him if he told you, Remus." smirked an amused voice from the doorway. Sirius, Remus, and Tonks turned their heads to the side to see who on earth had joined them. Remus's eyes popped open in disbelief.

"Harry!" he gasped. "_You _were the drunk?"

"Not hardly, Mooney." the man laughed, taking up a seat next to Sirius. He conjoured himself his own cup of tea, and finished the entire thing in one gulp. When he was satisfied, he looked back to the very confused werewolf, humor sparkling in his mischeivious hazel eyes. "Harry's _way _too young to drink...although, to be honest, I _was _his age when I had my first Firewhiskey - remember Remus? It was the day after Lily poured that goblet of Pumpkin Juice on my head, I believe. Paddy and me snuck out to the Three Broomsticks for Firewhiskey. You begged and begged to know where we went, but we refused to tell you. Oops...I think I broke a promise there, Paddy. Forgive me?"

"It's perfectly alright, _Prongs._" Sirius chuckled, making sure to emphasize the man's name. "I believe a bit of proof was required to tell that tale. Don't you agree?"

"Quite, quite." the man said, nodding. Then, he threw his head back and laughed.

It was only after seeing the man laugh like that did Remus Lupin realize that he was - in fact - sitting in front of James Potter. He knew he shouldn't have been so terribly shocked - Sirius had come back from the dead as well, had he not? But seeing James after all these years...Remus felt his head spin. The last thing he registered before he passed out completely was James transforming into a stag to convince Nymphadora Tonks of the truth.

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><p>"How long must we wait in here?" Harry asked his mother for the fifth time. Currently, the youngest Potter and Lily were residing in the sitting room at 12 Grimmauld Place. It was all in an attempt to surprise Mooney (aka, Remus Lupin), the last of the faithful Marauders. James had left just a moment before after hearing his cue from Sirius, and Harry was finding himself being a bit too antsy. He'd just been given an opportunity to live the life he'd always dreamed of - now, he just wanted to start living it.<p>

"Soon, darling, soon." Lily chuckled softly, patting Harry's back. "If I know your father and his friends at all, I can tell you _exactly _what's going to happen."

"What's that?" Harry asked curiously, finding that he couldn't ever hear enough of his mother's voice.

"Well, you're father will waltz in being corny and overly dramatic. He and Sirius will tell a story from 'the good old days', and Remus will probably faint because James and Sirius didn't ease him into the situation properly. Then, Sirius will cast a charm that will dump at _least _a gallon of water on poor Remus's head, and he'll wake up in a daze, swearing it was all a dream. Then, James will stick his tongue out or do something else childish, and the three men will shed tears and hug each other like little girls, being _sure _to leave that part out when they tell me the tale. Also when they tell me, they'll probably add in a dragon or some other idiotic idea."

"It's amazing, but you're probably right, mum." Harry laughed. Lily shrugged happily, affection dripping into her words as she spoke of the Marauders.

"I just know them is all. After you've spent enough time with them, you'll see how predictable _and _unpredictable they can be." the redhead smiled.

The thought of spending so much time with the people he never got to know made Harry's heart race. He'd always longed for this - this life he never dreamed he could have. Now that it was happening, he couldn't believe it. He felt that he could never get enough of this happiness, and prayed to whoever might be listening that the grin that was on his face would never go away.

"We can go to Potter Manor, next." Lily told her son happily. "We can decorate your room however you like. I hope you'll be happy, sweetheart."

"There's no question," Harry assured Lily. "I _know _that I'll be happy - any life away from the one that I had will be happy."

"We can catch up soon, as well. I mean, I know you told us the basic outline of things, but I'm _positive _that there's more. There's so much we don't know about you - if you're good in school, if you play Quidditch, your favorite subject, your favorite teacher, you're favorite-"

"Mum!" Harry laughed. Lily blushed, and promptly quit speaking.

"Sorry. I just want to _know _you, Harry. You're my little baby, and I love you, and I want to know you." Lily said, smiling her most motherly smile.

"Don't worry about it. I'll tell you whatever you want to know, I promise." Harry swore.

Just as Lily reached in for a hug, James shouted from below them, "HARRY! LILY! THIS IS YOUR CUE TO COME DOWN TO THE BASEMENT TO SURPRISE REMUS!"

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><p><strong>So fun to write! I've never really written much for Tonks <em>or <em>Lupin before, but I found it rather easy:) I hope I had them in character! And _this _is where things will begin to lighten up - down with doom and gloom! Tomorrow, it's time for Potter Manor, Harry's new room, and a very awkward conversation between the faithful Marauders, Ron, Hermione, Tonks, Lily, and Harry :O And what will they tell Dumbledore? If you want to know, review!(: Thanks a million in advance!**

**=marauderette-47**

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	7. Storytime At Potter Manor

**Yes, They're Seriously Back!**

**By: marauderette-47**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters. Am I JK Rowling? No? Then I don't own it:)**

**A/N: I'm honestly so touched:') Such wonderful feedback! Thank you all so much! I really hope that this next chapter meets expectations - I know that it may SEEM a bit boring, because it will pretty much just be a HUGE discussion about Harry's years at Hogwarts, but I can promise that it will be _funny. _It's the Marauders, people, kinda hard NOT to add humor:) Shall we even (dare I say?) see SNAPE in this chapter? _*gasp!* _well, read on to find out! Enjoy! Oh, and as for pairings, they most definitely will NOT be the main focus of the story - it's all about people coming back and family stuff:) But, if you DO want to know what pairings there will be when the time comes, the pairings on my profile are the ones I'll be sticking to:) Thanks!**

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><p><strong>Chapter Seven: Storytime At Potter Manor<strong>

_**One Week AFTER the last chapter took place:)**_

"Harry James Potter!"

Harry groaned, and rolled over in his bed onto his stomach. He heard his godfather's loud and overly enthusiastic voice shouting at him from below. Where exactly, Harry _still _wasn't sure. Potter Manor was so large, Sirius could be in any _number _of rooms. Since Harry's room was on the fourth floor, it didn't exactly narrow down his options as to where to begin the search for his godfather.

But the kitchen was always a good place to start.

"What?" Harry called back groggily. He blindly groped his bedside table in the darkness. He found his glasses, and uncaringly thrust them onto his face. He let his green eyes adjust for a moment, before daring to look at the clock that hung on his wall.

2:30 AM. _Thanks _Sirius.

"Get down here!" Sirius shouted. Following this command, Harry heard two male laughs - two laughs that could have only come from Remus and James.

"_Honestly,_" Harry heard Lily grumble. "I don't see _why _this couldn't have just waited until morning."

"Because Flower," Sirius laughed. "Harry's already been through _five _years of school - the story won't exactly be over in ten minutes if you catch my drift. Besides, Ginger and Bushy-Hair said they've been sleeping _all _day in order to stay up _all _night to tell the story! You _can't _tell me you're not eager?"

"We have names you know." Harry heard Hermione grumble, and he was sure that his friend was crosisng her arms at the moment.

"Well _of course_ I'm eager!" Lily hissed, ignoring Hermione. "But to wake him up at such an ungodly hour-"

"He could have already been awake." James pointed out.

"Please!" Lily breathed. "James, have you _seen _our son? He sleeps like the dead! Just like-"

"ME!" James and Sirius laughed at the same time. Harry was chuckling to himself at the antics of his family. He forced himself to sit up in _his _bed in _his _room and wake up.

Harry looked around. Even though it had already been a week, his life _still _didn't seem real. His new adress was Potter Manor - the biggest house he'd _ever _had the pleasure of stepping into. It had six floors, and more room than Harry could ever use. He had even gotten to select his own_ room! _He had chosen one exactly one floor below his parents' room. It was relatively large, larger than both of Dudley's rooms put together _and _it had its own bathroom! In fact, the bathtub alone was larger than the old cupboard under the stairs at Number 4 Privet Drive.h

The room itself was literally made from Harry's wildest dreams. It was painted in Gryffindor colors (red and gold) and had more Quidditch posters than he cared to count. There were also personal pictures _everywhere _(both on the wall and in frames) of himself as a baby, his parents when they were in school, and even some pictures of himself, Ron, and Hermione from their years at school so far. There was even one of Ginny.

Two days after moving into Potter Manor, Harry had written to Ron and Hermione and told them _everything. _It had taken a while to convince them, but eventually, they came around and supported him like the best friends they were. Unfortunately, however, they had not mentioned a single _word _about Harry having to tell his new family about all they had missed so far in his life.

After changing, Harry sleepily made his way down to the dining room on the first floor. He found that Sirius, Remus, and Tonks (who were all 3 staying there, as they couldn't bear to be apart from their friends and the Potters for more than five moments) Lily and James, and Ron and Hermione were all seated. There was an immense amount of food on platters that cluttered the entire table, and everyone seemed wide awake.

"Hello, sweetheart." Lily smiled, kissing the top of Harry's head when he sat down next to her. "Want some breakfast?"

"At 2:30?" Harry asked skeptically, chuckling as he raised an eyebrow. "I'll pass."

"Come now, Harry!" Sirius chortled, patting his godson perhaps a bit _too _hard on the back. "S'never too early for Lily's cooking!"

"I suppose you're wondering why we've brought you down so early..." Remus began.

"Is this some kind of intervention?" Harry asked, laughing. He knew why they wanted him down there - he just hoped to Merlin he was wrong.

"Your parents invited us here to talk about school so far." Hermione smiled matter-of-factly. Harry groaned.

"Unfortunately, Hermione tipped them off about your 'modesty'." Ron grumbled, rolling his eyes. "Sorry, mate."

"Now, Ronald!" Hermione said. "You know perfectly well that Harry wouldn't have told them _everything _if I hadn't-"

"What did you do, Hermione?" Harry asked, almost fearing the answer he would recieve.

"Yes, Hermione." James said. "Just what _did _you do?"

"I had someone create a loose-lips syrum that would make Harry a bit more willing to tell you everything." Hermione said proudly, as if daring anyone to say anything bad about her idea.

"That's actually not a bad idea," Remus smiled at his former student.

"But whose making the potion?" Tonks asked. "Lily's the only one in this bunch whose _nearly _good enough and-"

"And _I _didn't make it." Lily finished. "So who did?"

"Oh, don't worry, he can be trusted." Hermione assured the adults. "I've arranged for him to drop it off at the house without a word - he's one of our professors."

"Oh, Hermione, you _didn't_." Ron moaned, freely allowing his head to beat against the table. Harry mimicked the action.

"What?" James asked. "What did she do?"

As if on cue, a cold and hard knock came at the door. Hermione was out of her seat quickly, and she opened the door a tiny crack.

"Hello, Professor." she whispered. "Do you have it?"

"I will give you this potion, Granger, _only _when you explain to me why on earth you had me make it in the middle of the night and drop it off in secret at a vacated house." a cold voice sneered in response.

"Hermione, I could strangle you." Sirius seethed, closing his eyes in tight concentration so as not to get up and kill something.

"Professor, you promised-" Hermione began, but the evil glare of Severus Snape shut her up.

"Granger, did you expect me to just drop off a Loose Lips Syrum at Potter Manor with _no _questions asked?" Snape hissed. "Now, you will recieve this vial _only _when I get the answers that myself _and _the Headmaster want."

"Boys," Sirius murmured to James and Remus. "Feel like taking a skip down memory lane?"

"Do you still remember your Ear Enlargement Charm, Padfoot?" Remus asked, showing off his rarely-used Marauder side.

"Might I ask who we're planning on jinxing?" James asked quietly, though he had a pretty good idea about who it was _before _Sirius sneered his answer.

"Snivellus."

Sirius had said the name so quietly, that it should have been impossible for Lily to hear. But she did, and she whipped her head around to face her husband and his two oldest friends. Upon seeing the look of cold hatred and determination on their faces, Lily got up out of her chair, and - after quietly telling Harry and Ron to stay put - made her way to the front door, where Hermione was still standing there pleading with Snape.

Hermione heard Lily approach her from behind, and her eyes widened. "Mrs. Potter, I don't think you should-"

"I can handle Severus, Hermione. Go join Harry and Ron in the dining room - I won't be a moment." Lily smiled motherly at the Muggle-born witch who was so much like herself. "And please dear, it's Lily."

Hermione mutely nodded, flushed red, and ran back to the dining room as quickly as her legs could carry her. Lily took a deep, calming breath, and turned back to the door where a gobsmacked Severus Snape was standing there with his mouth hanging open.

"Severus, if you promised the girl a delivery without questions, I would follow through on your word if I were you. Us Muggle-borns can be delicate - although, I suppose you already knew that, _didn't _you?" Lily asked, laughing sadly with no humor. Too shocked to do much else, Snape handed Lily the vial with the potion in it. Finally, though, the Potions Master found his voice again and asked:

"H-How?"

"Oh, don't pretend to care for me now. You've done quite enough." Lily said, glaring at him coldly. "Why Dumbledore employed you I'll _never _understand - surely he must know what you are?"

"What am I?" Snape asked dumbly, getting lost in Lily's green eyes. Just like he had done so many times before...

"A Death Eater! One of _them!" _Lily said in disgust, wrinkling her nose. "Thank you very much for the potion. It will be of great use to us. Now, since you have wronged me so, you owe me something."

"What?" Snape asked, hating that Lily was still mad at him after all these years. Hopefully, once the Potter brat explained the story, she'd lighten up a little. He didn't even seem shocked that she was alive, and in front of hiim - or maybe, he was _so _shocked, it blew past all the other emotions and you just couldn't tell.

Lily walked towards Snape so that there bodies were tightly pressed together. She stared into his eyes, looking as intimidating as possible. She said in a low, determined voice, "Do not breathe a _word _of this to Dumbledore...got that? If you do...you'll regret it, Sev. Any chance of you earning my forgiveness will die the moment the words leave your lips."

"Would you like an Unbreakable Vow?" Snape asked, completley and utterly serious.

"That won't be neccessary." Lily said. Then, she slammed the door in her old friend's face, and turned back to her family in the dining room. She was greeted by the applause of the Marauders.

"Never thought I'd see the day!" Sirius shouted joviantly. "Snivelly Snape gets served by Evans - classic!"

"It's 'Potter' now, dimwit." Lily laughed, handing the vile of Loose Lips Syrum to Hermione. "I trust you know what to do?"

Hermione nodded, and - without warning - pushed Harry's head back and dumped the vial of pink, juice-looking liquid down his throat.

"Blimey, Hermione!" he complained. "Hey, you know, the consistancy of your hair as often reminded me of that of a squirrel."

"Hey!" Hermione defended instantly. "The bushiness has gone down, thank you very much!"

"It's just the potion talking, Hermione." Ron laughed. "It obviously works."

"He'll say whatever's on his mind for a few moments," Lily recalled. "But just for a little while. In I'd say about five minutes, he'll only be 'Loose Lips' when we ask him a direct question."

"You know Sirius, it's often bothered me that you abuse animals. And you wouldn't expect that, you being an Animagus and all. I mean, you're the one who told me to judge a man by how he treats his inferiors not his equals, but look at how you treat Kreatcher! Sure, okay, you treat _other _house elves well, but I think that Kreatcher just needs a good cuddle! Someone to say 'I love you and I'm here for you'. I mean, if _I _was Kreatcher, I would definitely someone to brighten my day. Perhaps you should make him a nice card! Or breakfast, why do we never make house elves breakfast in bed? _Especially _the ones at Hogwarts? They slave for hours and hours to make us all that delicious food, but who feeds _them_? I think we should host a huge breakfast for misunderstood house elves, but Sirius, you're not invited. I'd like you to use that time to give Kreatcher that cuddle I mentioned earlier." Harry said all of this very fast, and as soon as he was done, _everyone _burst out laughing.

Five minutes later, Harry had picked on nearly everyone present. Finally, though, the potion concentrated in his system, and he stopped blabbing. It was then that Remus made the announcement to begin the story. And - unfortunately - Harry had to start it.

"Alright Harry, let's start with the basics," James said eagerly. "Where did you live before you went to Hogwarts?"

Harry groaned. "At the Dursleys," he said gloomily. "With my Aunt Petunia, my Uncle Vernon, and my cousin, Dudley."

"How did they treat you, sweetheart?" Lily asked, wiping a tear that had _already _leaked from her eye.

Harry sighed. He had a feeling he would be doing that quite a bit. "They didn't actually _hit _me or anything...sometimes I went a few days without food, though, and - until my second year at Hogwarts - I...er...slept in a broom cupboard."

"YOU WHAT?" was the general outburst from the occupants of the room.

"It got better!" Harry tried to assure them, but his family was past the point of reason.

"Feel like pausng the story to beat up Dursley arse, Padfoot?" James growled, rolling up the sleeves of his shirt. "I'll _kill _them!"

"Oh, _Petunia_..." Lily sobbed brokenly, tightening the hold she had around her sweet baby.

"Why don't we go kill them _after _the story?" Tonks recommended, though her hair was blood red. "I'm angry as well, but at this rate, we won't even hear about how he got his letter."

After everyone had a few minutes to calm down, they picked up on questioning Harry...

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><p>At ten o'clock in the morning, you would be rather surprised (or, rather, not) to see eight people asleep in the living room at Potter Manor. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all sprawled out on the couch, drool hanging from Ron's lower lip. James and Lily were curled up on the floor against the back of a chair, tear streaks still evident on Lily's cheeks. Sirius was hogging the middle of the floor, in a position that looked uncomfortable to say the least. Lupin was asleep in the chair that Lily and James were leaning on, and Tonks was counting sheep in a recliner in the corner of the room. While there were many, many, <em>many <em>bedrooms in Potter Manor, after the story of Harry's school years, everyone was too tired to do anything but drag their tired bodies to the living room and crash in the first place they landed.

It had been an interesting conversation to say the least. Thanks to the Loose Lips Syrum and the input from Ron and Hermione (and, occasionally, Professor Lupin) nothing was left out, and everyone was _completely _caught up. Everyone was planning on paying the Durlsley's a visit the next day, and it would take everything within Lily _not _to use an Unforgiveable Curse on her sister. She was still mad as hell at Severus, but she _had _lightened up a bit when she'd learned that he wasn't a Death Eater anymore. James and Sirius still wanted to jinx him, though. During the story, Harry had told everyone of the Prophecy, and _that _was when there hadn't been a dry eye in the room.

"Don't worry about it, Harry." James tried to assure him son. "That Dark bastard won't touch you."

"Not as long as _we're _alive." Sirius added. "You know we'd do anything for you."

"Oh, Harry..." Lily had murmured. "My sweet, brave Harry...you'll be okay, I promise. I swear."

They'd also all agreed on another thing - Dumbledore wouldn't be hearing from them _anytime _soon. If he called for Harry, the Weasleys were to pretend that he was staying with them. It wasn't that anyone thought Dumbledore was evil - he obviously wasn't. But he _could _be manipulative, and no one wanted their newfound family to be split up. He might try to send Harry back to the Dursleys, or even send Sirius, James, and Lily to the Ministry for some stupid reason. They simply _couldn't _let that happen.

"You know he'll find out eventually," Harry had warned.

"Then we'll keep him in the dark as long as possible." Sirius had responded.

Though it was morning, the eight people asleep in the living room at Potter Manor had only just become so. They wouldn't be waking until nearly six in the evening, and by that time, the light in the sky would be dimming. There were a lot of uncertainties still in the air, the biggest of which was Harry's survival when the war finally drew closer. But, for now, the eight witches and wizards dreamt peacefully...or - for one young wizard - _not _so peacefully.

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><p><strong>Okay, I admit, that it <em>was <em>a bit dry - I've decided this was more of a filler chapter. But now that everyone's back, the initial shock is gone, they're all in Potter Manor, and everyone's caught up, the plot can begin! Oh, and I know that Snape's reaction was a bit small, but it'll be bigger later, _trust _me:) So - even though it wasn't the best chapter - I _do _hope you enjoyed it, and continue to read! I'll upload the next chapter VERY soon, and it WILL be better, I pinky promise! Happy Thanksgiving! **

**-Marauderette-47**

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	8. Nightmares and Dursleys

**Yes, They're Seriously Back!**

**By: marauderette-47**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters. Am I JK Rowling? No? Then I don't own it:)**

**A/N: Thank you all so much for the reivews! 125 reviews for _seven _chapters? That's amazing! I love you all! If anyone ever has any suggestions, just let me know! Your input means a lot:D So, without further adieu, enjoy Chapter 8!**

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><p><strong>Chapter Eight: Nightmares and Dursleys<strong>

It was often rumored that from the years 1971-1977, there was a single way to die in the Gryffindor Common Room; and that was to wake up Sirius Black. So when he was woken up at two thirty in the morning on a _Saturday_, Sirius was murderous. He grumbled to himself in frustration, and forced himself to sit upright in his bed. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, and tried to make sense of the noise that had woken him up from probably the best dream he'd ever had.

"_AGH!_"

There it was again! Sirius realized that the sound was scream, a cry; and it was coming from upstairs. Sirius slipped on his comfiest pair of slippers, and tip-toed up two flights of steps to his godson's room. The screams got progressively worse and louder the closer Sirius got to Harry's room. Now fully awake, panic took place of irritance, and Sirius found himself worried for his godson's well-being. He finally made it to Harry's door, and opened it quickly, glad that Harry had enough sense not to lock it. For a minute, Sirius scanned the room in front of him in an attempt to find a Death Eater choking Harry, or an owl pecking his eyes out. But there was nothing there. Just Harry asleep on his bed.

"_AGH! NO!" _

Sirius actually had to cover his ears as Harry screeched again. In an instant, Sirius's heart rate went down. Dream. Harry was only having a dream...or, well, _nightmare, _but still. At least he was physically alright. Sirius cast a silencing charm in Harry's room using wandless magic, and sat down next to his godson. He tried to remember what Lily had said to him once about how to go about waking someone up from a nightmare, but he couldn't for the life of him remember the proper way. And Harry's screams were cutting into his concentration greatly. Finally, though, the wordless cries began to make sense, and Sirius felt his heart break all over again.

_"No, he's not dead, he's only just gone through! SIRIUS!" _

In that minute, Sirius had a huge epiphany. Harry was screaming for him. _Him. _Not James or Lily or anyone else; Harry wanted Sirius. Sirius knew how much Harry loved James and Lily; it was evident everytime the teenager looked at his parents how much he cared for them. But for over two years, Sirius had been the only family Harry had had. And when he died, Harry must have gone mad with grief. Sirius realized that he couldn't be so reckless and irresponsible - he could risk leaving Harry again, and even though Harry had James and Lily once more, he would still scream for _Sirius _in his sleep.

_"I'll kill her! SHE KILLED HIM, I'll KILL her!"_

Unable to sit there and just listen to Harry in pain, Sirius gently shook his godson's shoulders. Harry was still pounding his pillow with his fist, and didn't seem to register Sirius's presence at all. Sirius shook Harry a little more roughly, and said, "Harry! Harry, wake up, it's only a dream! I'm fine, I'm right here, wake up!"

Harry - now sweating - gasped as his eyes shot open. He sat bolt upright in bed, and looked wildly around his room. For a moment, it seemed that he didn't have a clue as to where he was. But after a minute, he registered that he was in his room at Potter Manor, and that Sirius was sitting on the edge of his bed. Harry collapsed back on his mountain of pillows, and wanted to bury his head in them in embarrasment. Sirius had seen him having a nightmare, had heard him scream for him in panic and need. Sirius must have thought he was such a baby.

"Are you alright?" Sirius whispered, trying his best to play the part of 'comforting guardian'.

"Fine." Harry mumbled. "Sorry you had to see that."

"Do you...have nightmares often?" Sirius murmured awkwardly.

Harry shrugged, trying not to let Sirius see how shaky and upset he really was over the dream. "I s'pose."

"Then why is this the first time I've heard you?" Sirius wondered aloud.

"I usually ask mum to cast a Silencing Charm on my room. I tell her it's for 'adolescent privacy', but I forgot to get her before I went to sleep tonight." Harry explained softly.

"Is that the first nightmare you've had about...me?" Sirius asked.

Harry laughed bitterly, and Sirius didn't like the sound of his godson in such pain. "I wish," he mumbled. "But I could never be that lucky."

"I wish you wouldn't have bad dreams about me," Sirius told Harry sadly. "I'm right here, kiddo. I'm alive and I'm okay and I'm not going to leave you again."

"But Sirius," Harry said, looking his godfather directly in the eye. "If you think about it...you just died a week and a half ago. I _watched _it happen. And I had never felt so guilty and hopeless in my life."

"But I'm here now," Sirius nearly whined, unsure of how to make Harry see reason.

"I know." Harry said, allowing Sirius a small smile. "And maybe one day, I'll stop having nightmares about it. But..." Harry trailed off, at a loss for words. He sighed heavily, and said in a barely audible tone of voice, "I'm so damn _weak._"

"No." Sirius said certainly, forcing Harry to meet his gaze.

"What?"

"No." Sirius said again. "You're not _weak, _Harry. In fact...I don't think I've ever met anyone stronger than you."

"Then why am I acting like such a child? _Why _am I still having nightmares?" Harry asked, angry at himself for letting himself be so affected.

"No one's perfect, Prongslet." Sirius smiled softly. "And you _are _only human."

"Only human..." Harry mused. "Sirius...what would you say if I asked you how to become an Animagus?"

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><p>"Are you sure it's a good idea to bring Sirius with us, Lils?" James asked his wife, as themselves, Remus, Tonks, and Harry prepared to head to the Dursley residence at number 4, Privet Drive. "You <em>know <em>how...rash he can be."

Lily eyed her husband dangerously, and said, "Of course I'm sure. I'll _need _some of his rash magic to make Petunia suffer _half _as much as I want her to."

"You don't plan on..._killing _them, do you?" Tonks asked carefully. "I mean, I hate them too, but isn't murder a little...much?"

"Of course they won't die." Lily said calmly, taking a steadying breath and shaking her head. "Of course not - she _is _my sister, after all. But there's nothing wrong with a little bit of good, old fashioned, _payback. _And _that's _why I've never been so happy to have brefriended the Marauders."

"Alright, family!" Sirius shouted happily, bounding down the steps. "Got everything we need?"

"We're ready to go, Padfoot." James smiled happily. "Ready to kick some Durlsey arse?" he added in a lower voice that only Remus and Sirius could hear.

"Alright, alright!" Lily said impatiently. "Let's go, already!"

Harry was taken aback a little at the tone in his mother's voice. He expected her to be angry with his Aunt Petunia, but he'd never heard his mother sound so _vicious._

Together, the six witches and wizards Apparated to Little Whinging. It was six o'clock in the evening, so the Dursley's would be just about ready to sit down for dinner. Harry wondered for a moment if they were curious as to why Harry hadn't come back for the Summer Holidays, but then he realized that they probably didn't care. Hmph. Stupid relatives.

Lily led the way to the front door of Number 4, and knocked twice. She waited and waited, but no one came to the door. It was very obvious someone was home, though; the lights were all on. Frustrated, Lily knocked repeatedly, cold and hard. Eventually, loud thudding footsteps could be heard, and Harry knew before the door even opened that he would soon be face to face with his beefy Uncle Vernon.

"Yes, yes, who _is _it?" Vernon spat as he answered the door. When he saw the magical folk in front of him, his stupid, beefy face paled considerably. He stammered a few unintelligable words, and backed up a few paces. Lily - with a cold, hard glare - said, "Hello, _Vernon._"

Vernon passd out, and fell to the floor of his entranceway with a _thud. _Lily looked like she couldn't care less. "Tonks," she said. "Keep an eye on Vernon. Move him to the living room perhaps. Harry, James, Sirius, and Remus - I trust you can take care of Dudley?" the boys answered Lily with eager nods. "I'll handle Petunia."

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><p><strong>Read the following in any order that you like - makes no difference to the plot;)<strong>

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><p><em><strong>Nymphadora Tonks and Vernon Dursley<strong>_

Tonks moved Vernon to the living room couch. She could hear a lot of yells, screeches, and thuds from the rooms beyond, and Tonks was mad that she couldn't help. But then she realized that she had the ring-leader Dursley in the same room as her, and in anger, she gave Vernon a duck-bill.

"What makes you think you can treat a kid like that, huh?" Tonks asked, furrowing her eyebrows. "What'd he ever do to you?"

Of course Vernon could give her no answer, so Tonks kept right on talking. "And why would you make him sleep in a cupboard? And why did Harry miss meals? _Huh? _Could you even go an _hour _without food, you great oaf?"

Being so rude to the man who'd made Harry's life miserable felt bloody good, so Tonks started laughing as she continued to insult Vernon. "And what's your problem with magic, huh Vermin? Jealous you were born without it? Well you _should _be jealous - magic is great! We can eat and eat and eat and then cast a simple charm and BAM we're skinny! But you...tsk tsk...I'm afraid it would be too late for _any _charm to make an _ounce _of difference, Dursley. In fact, I hope that you - you get so fat that you explode! Of course, we wouldn't _need _body fat to make us _wizards and witches _explode - all we have to do is cast 'Reducto!' Do you even know what that _is_? Of course not! Because you're an idiot!"

Tonks got out her wand again, and cast the Backwards Words Jinx, that would make Vernon sound like he was speaking Jibberish for the next twenty-four hours. After she cast the spell, though, things got awkward. She was sitting alone, in a living room, with an unconscious magic-hating Muggle. Tonks began to tap her feet, and she looked around the room for anything entertaining. Sigh. This was going to be a _long _night.

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><p><em><strong>James Potter, Harry Potter, Remus Lupin, Sirius Black, and Dudley Dursley.<strong>_

__James, Harry, Remus, and Sirius grabbed Dudley Dursley by his fat arms, and hauled him off to his bedroom while Lily confronted Petunia. They locked the door with their wands, and turned to face the stupid, idiotic kid in front of them.

"_So_..." James began. "Dudley Dursley...stupid little name, isn't it?"

"W-Who are you?" Dudley stammered, looking between the four men in front of him. "W-What do you want with me?"

"Well, _neffy-poo..._I'm your Uncle James. Harry's dad? And these two _c__harming _gentlemen in front of me are Remus Lupin and Sirius Black-"

"Sirius Black?" Dudley squeeked. "Harry's g-godfather? T-That _murderer._"

"Scary-looking thing, ain't I?" Sirius laughed. "I heard you gave our young Harry a..._hard time, _Dudders."

"I-I-" Dudley stuttered. "Oh, please don't kill me!"

"Please! We're not going to go to prison for the likes of _you_!" Remus spat. "But you'll rue the day you _ever _messed with Harry Potter!"

"What are you going to do with me?" Dudley asked, scratching his head like a gorilla.

"Well Dudley," James laughed. "Have you ever heard of the Bat-Bogey Hex?"

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><p><em><strong>Lily Potter and Petunia Dursley<strong>_

__It was just Lily and Petunia in the kitchen. Petunia stared at Lily in utter disbelief. No one had said a word yet, but Petunia broke the silence.

"L-Lily..." she stammered. "But you were dead!"

"Wow, _Tuni,_" Lily said bitterly. "I believe that would be the first time you've called me Lily since we were fourteen. After that it was 'freak' and 'idiot' and 'girl'."

"A-Are you a ghost?" Petunia stammered. "Are you here to h-haunt me?"

"No I'm not a ghost, _idiot._" Lily said, glaring at her sister. "I've come back. And it's a bloody good thing I have - who knows what would have happened to Harry if he'd been left in your care for another damn _moment._"

"W-We took care of him!" Petunia insisted, but Lily cut her off. Petunia looked frightened, truly and honestly frightened at the harsh tone in Lily's voice. Lily smirked inwardly - she always knew that deep down, Petunia was scared of her magic.

"Took care of him?" Lily growled. "_Took care of him? _You starved him! You threw hm in a _cupboard! _Did the poor darling even know his name was _Harry? _Did he know _my _name? Or _James's_? Or did you just agree with your _wonderful _sister-in-law and tell my son that his parents were no-good, jobless _drunks?"_

"I never said that!" Petunia tried, but Lily was past the point of reason.

"_NO!" _she shouted, and in her anger, she shattered the kitchen windows with Accidental Magic. "You told him that we died in a car-crash caused by drunk driving! Don't _lie _to me, Petunia! We gave Harry a Loose Lips Syrum - I know _everything!"_

These words seemed to frigthten Petunia more than anything else that Lily had said thus far. "Lily-" Petunia said in a pleading voice, but Lily cut her off again.

"No, Petunia! This shouldn't even be _happening!_" Lily shouted. "We should be discussing local news over _tea _right now! Our sons should be laughing over some teenage things! Our husbands should be chatting about the weather! We should be reminscing about how wonderful our lives were when we were young, and how we were _never _cruel to each other! That was the future I envisioned for us when I was little!"

"Exactly!" Petunia yelled back. "That was what I imagined, too! But magic _ruined _it!"

"NO, PETUNIA!" Lily screeched, this time breaking Petunia's cabinet of good china. "Magic ruined nothing! _You _ruined it, Petunia!"

"What? Are you blaming _me _for your death?" Petunia spat venemously.

"Well I'm not _thanking _you for my life!" Lily retorted.

"Lily, how can you even-" Petunia began.

"No." Lily said, finally beginning to cry in frustration. "Petunia, you don't deserve to _speak. _Don't you remember how we used to love each other? But the moment that _one little thing _ changed, I'm suddenly this freaky outcast that you're embarrassed to be related to. And then after my _tragic _death - which _you _don't even seem to care about - you are asked to do one thing. _One. _And that is to make sure that my beautiful little baby gets the happiness and love that he deserved! The one that _I _would have given him! And you can't even do that for me! Instead, you starve him and make him feel like an outsider in his own _home._"

"Lily, I'm sor-" Petunia said, beginning to sob viciously.

"No, Tuni." Lily said, in a very disappointed tone of voice. "Save your breath. I'm not here to hex you. I'm here to say goodbye. To say goodbye to the one person that I used to think I could count on for everything and anything. To say goodbye also to the woman who ruined my son's life. Goodbye Petunia. I hope you have a long and happy life."

And with that, Lily Evans Potter called for her family. As she was readying herself to leave, she entered the hallway and stopped in front of the cupboard under the stairs. The mere sight of the tiny door broke Lily's heart into a million pieces, and she fell to the floor and sobbed.

James got to her first. He scooped his small wife up into his arms, and carried her bridal-style out of the big white house. He held her closely to his chest, and whispered soothing things in her ear. The rest of the family followed the couple outside into the quiet street, and together, they Apparated from the place that Harry could honestly say he wasn't going to miss.

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><p><strong>about Sirius or James or Lily or ANYONE (even Remus and Tonks coming back for Teddy!) I'm in need of a good read tonight, so let me know! Thanks again!<strong>

**-marauderette-47**

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**Review! *winkwink***


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